Peter Jones (department store)
Encyclopedia
Peter Jones is a large, established and exclusive department store
in central
London
. It is owned by John Lewis Partnership
and located in Sloane Square
, Chelsea
.
(1843–1905), the son of a Carmarthenshire
hat manufacturer.
After serving an apprenticeship with a draper
in Carmarthen
he moved to London and established a small shop in Hackney
. He then moved to central London, and in 1877 moved to 4–6 Kings Road
the site of the present store. The business flourished, soon expanding to cover most of the block.
After a period of troubled trading and the death of Peter Jones, the store was purchased by John Lewis of the eponymous Oxford Street
store, who handed it over to his son John Spedan Lewis
in 1914. Soon after it became part of the John Lewis profit sharing partnership.
The present building, which occupies an entire island site on the west side of Sloane Square, was built between 1932 and 1936 to designs by William Crabtree
of the firm of Slater, Crabtree and Moberly. The building is the first modern-movement use of the glass curtain wall
in Britain (not, as is often claimed, the first per se, as late-Victorian examples in the gothic revival style exist) and is now a Grade II* listed building.
The store completed a lengthy refurbishment by John McAslan and Partners in 2004.
The Previous Managing Director was Simon Fowler, however, he has gone onto pastures new as Managing Director of the Oxford Street branch. The newly appointed MD is Tony Wheeler.
Department store
A department store is a retail establishment which satisfies a wide range of the consumer's personal and residential durable goods product needs; and at the same time offering the consumer a choice of multiple merchandise lines, at variable price points, in all product categories...
in central
Central London
Central London is the innermost part of London, England. There is no official or commonly accepted definition of its area, but its characteristics are understood to include a high density built environment, high land values, an elevated daytime population and a concentration of regionally,...
London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. It is owned by John Lewis Partnership
John Lewis Partnership
The John Lewis Partnership is an employee-owned UK partnership which operates John Lewis department stores, Waitrose supermarkets and a number of other services...
and located in Sloane Square
Sloane Square
Sloane Square is a small hard-landscaped square on the boundaries of the fashionable London districts of Knightsbridge, Belgravia and Chelsea, located southwest of Charing Cross, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. The square is part of the Hans Town area designed in 1771 by Henry...
, Chelsea
Chelsea, London
Chelsea is an area of West London, England, bounded to the south by the River Thames, where its frontage runs from Chelsea Bridge along the Chelsea Embankment, Cheyne Walk, Lots Road and Chelsea Harbour. Its eastern boundary was once defined by the River Westbourne, which is now in a pipe above...
.
History
The shop is named after Peter Rees JonesPeter Rees Jones
Peter Rees Jones was the son of Thomas Jones, a hat maker, born in Newcastle Emlyn, Carmarthenshire, Wales and founder of the Peter Jones department store in Sloane Square, London, England....
(1843–1905), the son of a Carmarthenshire
Carmarthenshire
Carmarthenshire is a unitary authority in the south west of Wales and one of thirteen historic counties. It is the 3rd largest in Wales. Its three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford...
hat manufacturer.
After serving an apprenticeship with a draper
Draper
Draper is the now largely obsolete term for a wholesaler, or especially retailer, of cloth, mainly for clothing, or one who works in a draper's shop. A draper may additionally operate as a cloth merchant or a haberdasher. The drapers were an important trade guild...
in Carmarthen
Carmarthen
Carmarthen is a community in, and the county town of, Carmarthenshire, Wales. It is sited on the River Towy north of its mouth at Carmarthen Bay. In 2001, the population was 14,648....
he moved to London and established a small shop in Hackney
Metropolitan Borough of Hackney
The Metropolitan Borough of Hackney was a Metropolitan borough of the County of London from 1900 to 1965. Its area became part of the London Borough of Hackney.-Formation and boundaries:...
. He then moved to central London, and in 1877 moved to 4–6 Kings Road
Kings Road
King's Road or Kings Road, known popularly as The King's Road or The KR, is a major, well-known street stretching through Chelsea and Fulham, both in west London, England...
the site of the present store. The business flourished, soon expanding to cover most of the block.
After a period of troubled trading and the death of Peter Jones, the store was purchased by John Lewis of the eponymous Oxford Street
Oxford Street
Oxford Street is a major thoroughfare in the City of Westminster in the West End of London, United Kingdom. It is Europe's busiest shopping street, as well as its most dense, and currently has approximately 300 shops. The street was formerly part of the London-Oxford road which began at Newgate,...
store, who handed it over to his son John Spedan Lewis
John Spedan Lewis
John Spedan Lewis was a British businessman and the founder of the John Lewis Partnership.The elder of two sons of John Lewis, who had opened the John Lewis department store on Oxford Street, London, Spedan Lewis joined the business at 19 and in 1914 assumed control of his father's second shop,...
in 1914. Soon after it became part of the John Lewis profit sharing partnership.
The present building, which occupies an entire island site on the west side of Sloane Square, was built between 1932 and 1936 to designs by William Crabtree
William Crabtree (architect)
William Crabtree was an English architect. His reputation rests mainly on his Peter Jones Department Store, Sloane Square and King's Road, Chelsea, London , designed for John Spedan Lewis , the founder of the John Lewis Partnership.-Other works:Crabtree worked in collaboration with Slater &...
of the firm of Slater, Crabtree and Moberly. The building is the first modern-movement use of the glass curtain wall
Curtain wall
A curtain wall is an outer covering of a building in which the outer walls are non-structural, but merely keep out the weather. As the curtain wall is non-structural it can be made of a lightweight material reducing construction costs. When glass is used as the curtain wall, a great advantage is...
in Britain (not, as is often claimed, the first per se, as late-Victorian examples in the gothic revival style exist) and is now a Grade II* listed building.
The store completed a lengthy refurbishment by John McAslan and Partners in 2004.
The Previous Managing Director was Simon Fowler, however, he has gone onto pastures new as Managing Director of the Oxford Street branch. The newly appointed MD is Tony Wheeler.
External links
- Official website of Peter Jones
- http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/t/modern-shop-architecture-shopping-between-wars/ RIBARibaRiba means one of the senses of "usury" . Riba is forbidden in Islamic economic jurisprudence fiqh and considered as a major sin...
picture in V&A collection] - Architects John McAslan + Partners