The picture is of the 1970's Co-op own brand label. Very likely still manufactured in CWS (Co-operative Wholesale Society) factories before they were closed or sold . For example the biscuit factory in Crumpsall, Manchester opened in 1873 finally shutting its doors in 1986 and it might have produced those cream crackers. There is a cream cracker story coming shortly that quintessential dry buscuit that demands a topping. It was invented in Ireland.....
In 1993 it was updated, and used extensively until 2006. But good fortune was hard to find for the co-operative movement during those years. The march of the multiples went on to grab the market share. It is only now with the "The Co-operative" branding do you feel the decline has been halted.
Black and white photo is from the Bishopsgate Institute in London which holds the London Co-operative Society archives. I hope to visit in a few weeks hence. A day out in Shoreditch just for curiosity. They have published lots of photos from the recent past on Flickr.
3 comments:
Liked the piece, Lawrence and it reminded me of my days working for the Royal Arsenal Co-operative Store in Woolwich. I spent a happy time working in the distribution department which was in a grand old Victorian warehouse by the Thames. It must once have been a tea warehouse because the place had a permanent smell of tea.
And before that I did a stint at the RACS grocery shop at the Links on Plumstead Common. Spent most of the morning watching the beetroot cook in a giant cooker.
There was also a Co-op Biscuit factory in Harlow until the 1980s at least. I think there are Flikr photos of it, perhaps after further use.
I left England for the US in early 1990 and the biscuit factory was still going strong at that time. I was the product development manager there and worked at Nabisco Group before then (Peek Freans in London and then Nabisco HQ in Reading). The CWS factory was a wonderful place to work.
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