Fantasy High Street From Yesteryear!

Any, and I mean any, decent department store would be good.

My old home city of Plymouth once boasted Woolworths, Spooners and John Yeo which together in the 1970's morphed into Debenhams, House of Fraser (Dingles), Littlewoods, BHS and the good old Co-op. The only one left at the moment is Dingles!
And with the exception of Debenhams and Dingles they all had grocery sections.

Squiffy

I remember Kennards department store in Croydon. It had an arcade and you could have a pony ride from one end of the arcade and back again for 6d! There were other animals in pens in the arcade, but I can't remember what!

Me too! My Nan lived near Croydon, and would take me there as a treat, especially for the pony ride as I was horse-mad!

Oh and also Trumps in Sidmouth ( not that Trump!)

Chelsea Girl
Saxone
Dolcis
Any Department Store
Oui Set
Kaliko
And more recently:
Laura Ashley Home (I know Next have taken over some aspects of it, but I loved wandering around their
different room displays for inspiration)
Karen Millen and Coast (which are now online only, and nowhere the same quality as previously)

Russell and Bromley and Rockeys in Torquay
Fullers and Chanels also in Torquay
Dolcis
Tinleys in Exeter
Colsons, Exeter, later to be Dingles.
Laura Ashley.
Shapleys grocers
Arding and Hobbs (in Clapham I think)
The Good Earth, (Leicester in the 60's)
Mothercare
Jaeger
Lotus shoe shops.

T J Hughes
Ethel Austin
Scotch wool shop - reminds me of choosing wool with my Mum

Oh as a small child in yorkshire christmas was coming when we where taken to Hull to the great Hammonds department store to see all the lovely windows etc. It was a joy to all the senses and we marvelled at the windows each year. For everyday memories there was our grocers Walter Wilson's and you went to the counter, where there were 2lb bags of sugar in stiff blue paper which didnt unwrap despite having no sticky tape on it or anything. Butter would be hailed as danish from the keg and they cut it out and wrapped it for you, In our family we all preferred "green" bacon, by which we meant unsmoked and the green was that rather pearly green tinge you could see on the bacon. Also my mother had a blue order book with them, she used to pay it all off every friday but in the week we children could be sent to get a extra loaf or baking powder or whatever was needed. We were not given any money and we just passed on the message to the grocer and it was written in the blue book and we took the item home Everyone was happy - the grocer didnt lose any trade, the forgotten or mislaid item was replaced and we were not likely to lose a coin down the drain or whatever. In fact I am so old folks that I remember there was still sweet and butter rationing in about 1953 because my mother made us special dresses and also coats for the coronation and my sister going outside in her new coat and picking up the butte ration for the whole family for the week, and beginning to eat some of it with it going all down the new coat. I remember my mother couldnt decide what upset her most. All her lovely work on the coat smothered with butter before we had been anywhere with the outfit or the loss of our butter for most of the following week. I can remember being allowed a quarter of sweets for 6d that is 2-1/2 pence today and feeling lucky to have 3d of one sweet and 3d of another, Children today would think they were hard done to , but we just thought it was lovely to have them.

Lewis' in Sauciehall St in Glasgow, where Mummy took us to see Santa Claus every December when we were small enough to enjoy it, AND let us wander round the toy dept. with strict instructions not to touch anything, but decide what we wanted to give each other for Christmas. Then my sister and I could each whisper what it was to her, when she came back from buying our presenst as unortrusively as possible.

Later when I was given 10 shillings to buy all my Christmas presents for family, and two special school friends and was old enough to shop on my own, I added Boots the Chemist to my list.

Looking at clothes in Copeland & Lye or Forsyths' was wonderful, but they were too expensive to be bought for us - we only got our school uniforms there because nowhere else stocked them.

And let's just add all the book-shops in the world on as well, please.

And that very posh greeengrocer's in the High St in Paisley - I think it was called Cashmere's and the Toy Shop in one of the little back streets near the Sheriff Court, although we frequented the Dolls' Hospital in a Nissen hut on the road towards Johnstone more frequently,

Freeman Hardy & Willis
Dolcis
Saxone
You can tell by list I liked my shoes
C & A
BHS
Woolworths
Jackson tailors
Burtons
John Collier
Weaver to Wearer

Lawleys the china and glassware shop. I have some lovely items I bought in their sale, still in use from 40 years ago.

My mother took us to the Davis theatre in Croydon when there was opera and as a treat went to the Lyon’s cafe for jelly and yogurt. It was a long time before yogurt was on sale elsewhere.

PinkCosmos. You brought back memories for me. In the 1930s my mother would take me and my sister to one such shop to choose material for our summer dresses. Nothing over fourpence a yard. Instead of a farthing change were given a paper of pins.

I remember Kennards department store in Croydon. It had an arcade and you could have a pony ride from one end of the arcade and back again for 6d! There were other animals in pens in the arcade, but I can't remember what!

Freeman, Hardy and Willis
Dolcis
Independent shoe shops
I’ve always loved shoes! I once had a part-time job in a shoe shop. It’s easier for me to buy shoes than clothes, because my feet are a standard size, but the rest of me isn’t! 🙄😂

The Midland Educational shop was a treasure trove of arts and crafts materials, games, jigsaws, etc..
And Midland Dairies for their delicious "japs" and fresh bread.

Martin Fords
Chelsea Girl
Bhs
Mac Fisheries
Woolworths
Dolcis
C&A, all in Hounslow, Middx.
And another Dept store in Hounslow, the name of which escapes me (not Debenhams but miss those too)…

Moor Street Warehouse in Birmingham (closed in 1960s). An Aladdin's cave of clothes, fabrics, furniture, household goods... As a child I was most fascinated by the system of payment. Money was placed in a container and it was sent whizzing off along cables round the shop (presumably to an accounts dept).
More recently BHS - great for lighting, towels, sheets as well as clothes. Good value. Would like to see that come back.

Ironmongers, or Chandlers as my gran used to call them, smelt faintly of paraffin, stocked to the ginnels, asssistants knew where everything was, baskets and gardening tools, rubber seals and antpowder, screws and lightbulbs the owner used to call ‘globes’ goods hanging up outside, possibly precariously.

This is a great thread OP,
Kardomah! my mum loved coffee and cake in there

Lyons corner All those lovely meals on plates in heated compartments
You lifted the lid & helped yourself
Great sausage & mash & gravy

Had my first Saturday job in Bentalls in Kingston

A shop selling dress fabrics and sewing accessories.

Dressers, a proper stationer with a lovely selection of high end pens

ginny

BHS for me please. I still have jumpers in good condition from 20 years ago. Also loved their deli counter in Watford when they had one.

I have just retrieved my BHS cotton heavy weight jumpers, for winter. Like yours , quite old but still going strong and smart
We also used to go in their cafe in Blackpool.
I also miss banks in the town as we can not pay in cheques in the PO.

Lyon’s Coffee House, where my Mother would let me choose a cake. Even further back in time a Grocer’s in Ripley, Derbyshire that patted the butter to form a swan on the top. Debenhams, where I could buy dresses.

Laura Ashley as well. My winter wedding dress was an LA70s corduroy long dress. I think I must have looked like a sofa.

Habitat in the 60s and 70s when it was all so new and stylish. All the French style kitchen things.
And the record shops where you could listen to the record in a booth. Coffe bars with a juke box and Italian coffee.