Our Heritage

The Selfridges story.

1856

Harry Gordon Selfridge – always called Harry by his family and friends – was born on January 11 1856 in Ripon, Wisconsin, USA.

1879 - 1885

At the age of 23, he started work in the wholesale division of Field & Leiter, Chicago's leading department store. Transferring to the retail division in 1885, Harry Gordon led the shopping revolution taking place in the booming city.

1885 - 1890

Nicknamed Mile-a-Minute Harry, Selfridge surged through the store like electricity. His innovations included lighting the store windows at night and opening Chicago's first store restaurant.

1890

Now married to cultured linguist Rose Buckingham, Harry Gordon had become a socially successful business personality in one of the most thrusting cities in America.

1893

During Chicago's spectacular 'World's Fair', Marshall Field commissioned the city's most celebrated architect to create a spectacular annexe to the store. For Harry Gordon, the project was a master-class in design and construction.

1893-1905

For a decade, Selfridge worked with Daniel Burnham on developments that turned Marshall Field into the largest store in the world, but craving more recognition for his initiatives he left in 1903 to establish his own retail empire.

After a few unfulfilled months running his own store – H.G. Selfridge & Co – Harry Gordon abruptly sold and retired a wealthy man, but soon set his sights on opening his own store in the largest, richest city in the world – London.

1906-1907

In June 1906 Selfridge & Co. was formed. Work began on demolishing properties lining the 'dead end' of Oxford Street, where Selfridge planned to build a magnificent neoclassical building.

1907 - 1909

The partnership between Selfridge and his financial partners collapsed in 1907 and for a while it seemed there would be no store, but – with new financing from tea tycoon John Musker - it was full steam ahead with the construction of London's newest steel framed building. Only the second in Britain, it was completed in an astonishing ten months.

15 March 1909

Named after its founder, Harry Gordon Selfridge, Selfridge & Co. opened its doors on Oxford Street on 15 March 1909. With his innate understanding of the value of publicity, Harry Gordon masterminded the elaborate opening advertising campaigns. The crush was so large it took thirty police officers to hold back the crowds.

Breaking new ground in his newly adopted city, Harry Selfridge took to using a new name: Gordon. To his thousands of staff however, he was always The Chief.

25 July1909

When Louis Blériot became the first aviator to fly over water, his fragile plane was put on show in Selfridges for four days, drawing crowds of over 150,000. Never had visiting a department store been so exciting.

Harry Gordon Selfridge had truly established the theatre of retail and from then on, if a topic or trend was new and exciting Selfridges would showcase it first.

1910

Nothing stood still at Selfridges where the Chief said: 'I am prepared to sell anything from an aeroplane to a cigar'. In 1910 – in a move that altered the shape of retail space for ever – he opened a beauty department inside the ground floor entrance area.

The Selfridges transport fleet delivered goods throughout London three times daily. The fifty horse- drawn vans were soon to be out-numbered by sixty-five Halley petrol vans and eleven electric Edison vans.

1911 - 1913

Aimed at 'thrifty housewives', the Bargain Basement opened in 1911. Merchandise was just as carefully displayed as on the upper floors showcasing Selfridge's knack of mixing the exclusive with the everyday.

In 1911 came the biggest bookshop in the world, followed by a pet department where pride of place went to the Chief's favoured pugs. In 1913 world-famous dancers Florence Walton and Maurice Mouvet performed for 2,000 revellers at a charity ball on the store's roof terrace.

1914 - 1918

At the outbreak of war women stepped up to fill the jobs. At Selfridges, they cleaned windows, drove the delivery vans, operated the lifts, formed a fire brigade – and even stoked the store's huge boilers.

In making huge efforts to give special service to the public, it was as Harry Gordon who said the phrase the store made famous: 'business as usual.'

1914 -1918

By now living in his Berkeley Square mansion, a popular song earned Harry Gordon the nick-name the Earl of Oxford Street.

The company acquired several important stores outside London, as well as starting construction on the western extension in Oxford Street.

As the high-octane1920s unfurled, Selfridges sold everything from newly-fashionable red lipstick to imported Pogo Sticks. In 1922 alone, over 15 million people shopped in the store.

1925 -1926

During events to celebrate the store's 16th birthday, John Logie Baird made history by showing his televisor. Selfridges would later lead the way in selling televisions.

Up on the roof, the BBC's transmitters broadcast live music from London's top night clubs, where on most nights sprightly 69 year old Harry Gordon Selfridge could be seen escorting the celebrated Dolly Sisters.

1926 -1929

With the formation of the Gordon Selfridge Trust in 1926, Selfridge and his son Gordon Jr – by now a director – became millionaires.

In 1927, Selfridges bought stores in Sheffield and Leeds and by 1929 Selfridges was the largest retail group in Europe.

Meanwhile, Architectural Design Magazine called the newly completed Oxford Street flagship 'the most imperial building in London.'

1930 -1935

With the impact of Wall Street's dramatic collapse not yet felt in Europe, the store confidently promoted its 21st Birthday in their usual extravagant style. The magnificent clock The Queen of Time was installed in 1931 – but time was running out for big spending.

With consumer confidence plunging and recession fast turning into The Great Depression, Selfridges supported the plea made by the Prince of Wales to 'buy British'.

The store's own Silver Jubilee earned Harry Gordon Selfridge many accolades. 'He has not merely transformed Oxford Street into one of the world's finest shopping centres', wrote Drapers Record, 'he gave a lead to the entire store trade.'

1936 -1939

Now living at Brook House, Park Lane, Selfridge's personal fortune had all but vanished – much of it on reckless gambling and expensive women.

Selfridge clung onto power. But in October 1939, he too was exiled. At the age of 83, thirty years after revolutionising London's retailing and deeply in debt to the store – Mr Selfridge was forced to retire with the nominal title of 'President'.

1947

As people throughout Britain struggled to cope in the coldest winter since records began, shopping for anything other than basic necessities was impossible. The country was deep in power cuts – and even deeper in snow. Newspapers were confined to just four pages, and holidays abroad were banned.

In May that year, Harry Gordon Selfridge died peacefully in his sleep at the age of 91.

1950 -1955

In July 1951, Selfridges was sold for £3.4 million to Lewis's Investment Trust. As shopping slowly emerged from post-war gloom, newly-affluent 1950s families craved consumer goods. Men wanted cars. Women wanted refrigerators and washing machines – while families everywhere wanted a television set.

1955 - 1965

In 1959, Selfridges added a thoroughly modern innovation – a multi-storey garage. Four years in the planning, the garage – with heated ramp and valet service – was directly linked to the new Orchard Restaurant.

But, over-burdened with middle-management and with no clear merchandise message, Selfridges was beginning to drift. Watching – and waiting – was retail tycoon Charles Clore.

In 1965, Leonard Sainer, Deputy Chairman of Clore's flourishing British Shoe Corporation and its parent company, Sears Holdings mounted a take-over bid. By November that year, they had successfully acquired the business for £63 million.

1965 - 1969

The sixties were in full swing and Selfridges was given a desperately needed make-over. In the youth-led fashion boom Selfridges opened Miss Selfridge. With its own entrance in Duke Street, a mezzanine coffee bar, specially mixed music and an exclusive Pierre Cardin department, Miss Selfridge was a bold gesture to challenge the rise of small, fashion boutiques.

In 1969, the store's 60th Birthday – its Diamond Jubilee – was celebrated with the old flair. Exhibitions of jewels drew crowds, while major cosmetics brands created exclusives for the store.

Early 1970's

Since the store opened in 1909, celebrity appearances had always drawn record-breaking crowds. In 1980 it was Star Wars villain Darth Vader.

1975 - 1985

Since the store opened in 1909, celebrity appearances had always drawn record-breaking crowds. In 1980 it was Star Wars villain Darth Vader.

'Television is here,' Gordon Selfridge had said when he launched the store's ground-breaking inter-active studio in 1939, 'you can't ignore it.' By the1980s shopping was propelled on its way by the weekly fix of TV's Dallas and Dynasty. At the time when fashion on 'the box' was about big hair, big shoulders – and big budgets – Selfridges became the first British department store to advertise on television.

1985 - 1996

In 1992, Sears Holdings created a £94 million re-development programme for Selfridges. The towering atrium escalators, and the yellow carrier bags – now a symbol of Selfridges – were put in place. But the renaissance of the store as a destination for shopping experience came with the appointment of Vittorio Radice in 1996.

1997 - 2002

In the six years he spent at the store, Vittorio Radice is acknowledged to have re-vitalised the great slumbering space that was Selfridges. 'Shopping is entertainment' said Radice, 'it's not just about the product, but about the smile, the packaging, the whole ambience'.

Before long, the yellow carrier was to become the hottest accessory in town – and not just in London. Selfridges opened a store in Trafford Park, Manchester in 1998, followed by the Exchange Square store in Manchester's city centre in 2002. Plans were put in place for a multi-million pound investment in a store in Birmingham, to be designed by radical architects Future Systems.

2003 – 2008

Harry Gordon Selfridge's spirit of innovation and creativity has been honored under the steer of W. Galen Weston and his family since 2003. The only store to be twice awarded the accolade of the Best Department Store in the World, Selfridges today is a shopping experience that builds upon Harry's principals of creativity, wit and impeccable customer service.

2009

We celebrated 100 years of Selfridges

We celebrated our centenary in style with an exclusive range of products in our signature shade, an exhibition and, of course, a party or two.

2009

Pierre Koffmann's Restaurant on the Roof

In 2009 we persuaded legendary chef Pierre Koffmann out of retirement to open a ten day pop-up restaurant on the roof of Selfridges London. Ten days turned into a two month sell-out sensation, which inspired Koffmann so much he went on to open a new restaurant.

20010

The launch of the Shoe Galleries

Launched in 2010, the Shoe Galleries at Selfridges London is the largest shoe department in the world. Designed by award-winning architect Jamie Fobert, it contains 6 salons, 11 brand boutiques and more than 4,000 pairs of shoes.

2010

Selfridges.com arrived

2010 saw the launch of our first transactional website. Now with over 20,000 products from over 850 brands, it's getting bigger each day.

2011

Project Ocean

Project Ocean was launched in May 2011 to inspire the public to celebrate the beauty of the oceans, to understand the threats resulting from over-fishing and to help us all make positive choices about the right fish to buy and eat.

2011

The Museum of Everything was everywhere

In our largest artistic collaboration to date, the Museum of Everything took over at Selfridges, with an art gallery, shop and show-stopping windows, all showcasing work from untrained, unintentional and undiscovered modern artists.

2011

We dreamed of a White Christmas

For Christmas 2011 our famous London windows became a magical winter wonderland as we dreamed of a White Christmas.

2012

We unveiled the Women's Designer Galleries

In February 2012 we unveiled the transformed Women's Designer Galleries at Selfridges London. Inspired by the store's neo-classical architecture, the space curates the best International and British designers.

2012

The Film Project

To mark the launch of the Women's Designer Galleries, we asked seven designers to create seven incredible films for us, each evoking the spirit of the modern woman.

2012

The Big Rooftop Tea & Golf Party

Summer 2012 was a momentous time for London. We celebrated with the Big Rooftop Tea & Golf Party - and a few extra-special after parties as well.

2012

The Beauty Workshop arrived

With everything from luxury skincare to the latest make-up must-haves, 2012 saw the arrival of the Beauty Workshop at Selfridges London, offering the ultimate beauty pitstop.

2012

Kusama took over Selfridges London

Louis Vuitton took over the windows and Concept Store in Selfridges London for the exclusive launch of their Kusama collection. The crowning glory was the giant masthead statue which was hoisted into place over night.

2013

Mr Selfridge

Based on Lindy Woodhead's Shopping, Seduction and Mr Selfridge, ITV's Mr Selfridge brings the life of our charismatic chief to the small screen.

Mr Selfridge, Sundays January /February 2013, 9pm ITV1