Mobile Shops

Penz · Post by **Penz** » Mon 18 Aug, 2008 9:40 pm

The 'things you don't see anymore' thread is getting a bit large so I've started this as a new thread.I'm sure lot's of you remember the mobile shops. In the sixties at Seacroft we had:Co-op ... It was a huge articulated serve yourself unit.Thrift Stores ... A beige coloured van? (BMC LD)Wonderloaf ... BMC LD vans. I think they were blue. They were based at a Bradford bakery. I used to help out on one of them and we used to have all out races with other Wonderloaf vans. The drivers were like lunatics.Walter's ... This was an independant. He ran his shop from a converted old Bedford coach and sold almost everything you could think of. He lived somewhere near Hansby Avenue.Ted's ... He was a greengrocer and used an old red van.

sluginc · Post by **sluginc** » Tue 19 Aug, 2008 2:57 am

In the 80's i remember a bloke called Ken who drove a big blue van selling just about everything that a normal shop would sell, he would stop at certain points on the Broadlea estate where i lived and open the back doors. He had a little set of steps for people to climb into the back and a little counter to serve you from, he had shelves at either side of the van and all the sweetie type things on his counter. Oooohhhhh the 10p bag of mixed sweets, boy that takes me back.

MrsG · Post by **MrsG** » Sat 23 Aug, 2008 12:17 am

They still have 'the van' in the town where I come from in Northamptonshire - goes round some of the estates each evening. i remember one of my eldest sister sending me to the van when i was about 10 years old (early 80's) for a bottle of 'ginger' (Irn Bru) every Sunday morning to help her get over her hangover, because she wouldn't drink the Alpine Man's (the pop van) version of the stuff that my mum used to buy. I also remember in the mid 80's that a 'chip van' used to come round once a week.

Trojan · Post by **Trojan** » Sun 24 Aug, 2008 2:54 pm

Morley which had a thriving co-operative society up to the early sixties, had a mobile shop - along wheelbase Austin - like all their vehicles it was yellow and had the MICSL logo inside a diamond on it. It used to cover the big new housing estates like Newlands, the Denshaws and Smithy Lane at Tingley.

Uno Hoo · Post by **Uno Hoo** » Mon 25 Aug, 2008 10:31 am

[Wonderloaf ... BMC LD vans. I think they were blue. They were based at a Bradford bakery. I used to help out on one of them and we used to have all out races with other Wonderloaf vans. The drivers were like lunatics.The Wonderloaf vans carried the slogan "Same Price As Ordinary Bread" on their sides. From the same bakery (I think), in Gain Lane, Bradford, came a short-lived fleet of small red vans carrying the logo "The Baker's Basket delivers to your door". This was house-to-house selling, but perhaps coincided with more women going out to work, so didn't last too long. The whole venture was an attempt to bolster sales lost as corner shops went out of business.Not quite mobile shops, but I still see the odd Rington's Tea van around. Wouldn't have thought that was still a viable business.

Festwerfer · Post by **Festwerfer** » Thu 28 Aug, 2008 8:22 pm

A bloke known as Ruddock had a green van that used to run around Belle Isle when I was a kid and I think he had a shop at the bottom of Sharpe Lane somewhere. Only other mobile of sorts I remember was Basil the Ice cream man.

Leeds-lad · Post by **Leeds-lad** » Fri 29 Aug, 2008 6:31 pm

Drake's on Armley Town St. Used to have a mobile van that used to deliver fresh meat& pies etc. back in the late 60'sAlso Geldards fruit & veg used to deliver with a Trailer about 15 years ago around Armley.

sundowner · Post by **sundowner** » Fri 29 Aug, 2008 9:13 pm

Uno Hoo wrote: [Wonderloaf ... BMC LD vans. I think they were blue. They were based at a Bradford bakery. I used to help out on one of them and we used to have all out races with other Wonderloaf vans. The drivers were like lunatics.The Wonderloaf vans carried the slogan "Same Price As Ordinary Bread" on their sides. From the same bakery (I think), in Gain Lane, Bradford, came a short-lived fleet of small red vans carrying the logo "The Baker's Basket delivers to your door". This was house-to-house selling, but perhaps coincided with more women going out to work, so didn't last too long. The whole venture was an attempt to bolster sales lost as corner shops went out of business.Not quite mobile shops, but I still see the odd Rington's Tea van around. Wouldn't have thought that was still a viable business. Hi Uno Hoo Re Ringtons i dont think they are doing so bad they call on me once a month.thats because it is better for me not to be in every week Iam a tea drinker and to my mind there tea takes some beating.They also sell a range of biscuits under there own brand name plus coffee and other things.I worked for them at one time when i left school that was in the fiftys they have been going a lot longer than that they must be doing something right to be still around todayThey were one hundred years old last year.

jonleeds · Post by **jonleeds** » Fri 29 Aug, 2008 11:21 pm

I used to live in Morley (Hi Trojan!) and I remember the 'Pop man' driving the Alpine pop wagon, it used to be those glass bottles of pop that you got a ten pence deposit back for returning the bottles. I cant remember if it was Ben Shaws pop they delivered or their own brand of gassy soft drinks. I dont know if you can still buy those 1 litre glass bottles of pop but I can remember they were quite good value, last time i bought a litre of Tizer i think for only 30p and ten pence of that you got back for your return deposit making the pop only 20p (for those that cant do maths!). Bargain! Also in Morley we had folk deliver potatoes, coal plus the usual milk / eggs etc. I know that there are a few places that could definately do with some sort of mobile shop as the local village shop has closed down plus there are some new housing estates that were built without any shops / services and the nearest shops are more than a half hours walk away. Clearly designed with car owners in mind.

Uno Hoo · Post by **Uno Hoo** » Sat 30 Aug, 2008 10:26 am

Hi Uno Hoo Re Ringtons i dont think they are doing so bad they call on me once a month.thats because it is better for me not to be in every week Iam a tea drinker and to my mind there tea takes some beating.They also sell a range of biscuits under there own brand name plus coffee and other things.I worked for them at one time when i left school that was in the fiftys they have been going a lot longer than that they must be doing something right to be still around todayThey were one hundred years old last year. Hi SundownerPleased to hear Ringtons is still going strong. When I was a kid there were always two people in the vans, so trade must have been really brisk then.Worked on Tyneside a good few years back, very close to the Rington HQ. Big building close to the Tyne - almost expected to see "Cutty Sark" docked alongside. Also remember reading in "Sunday Times" years ago that Rington's top salesman held some sort of record for most customer calls and orders for any industry.Enjoy your next cuppa!