Author Topic: Lewis's Birmingham  (Read 14468 times)

W.A.Pirate

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Re: Lewis's Birmingham
« Reply #22 on: January 21, 2016, 05:13:10 AM »
    Jools 
           Yes I remember the vacuum cashier system, as a kid it amazed me because
you couldn't see where your money was disappearing to

           I remember other stores had that overhead wire tramway system , you hooked the container with the cash onto a trolley thing then pulled a rope , said cash would assisted by a spring  go zooming the length of the shop to the cashiers
cabin eventually your change & receipt would come zooming back.
           The Co-oP had a super system they had junction points which would send your container zooming off in another direction.

           This brings me to the point of this post .  As an inquisitive 7 year old out
shopping with my mom on Saturday afternoon in the Co-oP, Mom hands over cash cash , goes in container, container goes in trolley thing, rope is pulled container zooms off, I zoom off after container,  container stops changes direction, I do same
      Suddenly I get knocked to the floor by some man, he picks me up starts shaking me & shouting at me.  Mom arrives  asks him what the bl....y hell he thinks he is doing,   man gives mother some abuse,  moms wicker shopping basket delivers hefty blow to mans nether region, man is down on his knees,  another man arrives
Says he's  the floor manager wants to know whats going on, mom Say's this man attacked my little boy and was abusive to me,  manager asks man (still on his knees)his story, man calls me an uncontrolled ruffian, mom's about to swing basket again,  manager says madam I think we can settle this over a cup of tea  lets go to the cafeteria.  Over a pot of tea & scones manager explains other man is floorwalker (store detective) asks me why was I running so I told him I had seen all my moms money go in that container and wanted to know what happens to it.

    He smiled and said to my mom "We close in another 10 minutes if you care to wait till the floor is clear I'll show him how it all works.  And so we waited

    He showed me how the cashier tramway worked , also that each of the cabins had a small lift that took the cash direct to cashier & accounts on the top floor
  also how the lifts worked how if you pulled a handle a fire hose came out of the wall.   All this took time so it was after 7 when we left which meant quarter to eight when we got home.  More problems my dad was angry because we were late
 he'd come home from the Baggies expecting his tea to be ready for 6 o'clock
and we'd come home after 7 thirty & mom still had to do the cooking
           When mom explained what had happened his mood changed, he laughed his socks off,  gave mom a 10 bob note to get fish chips & mushy peas for our tea

  While mom was at the chippy he kept asking me "did she really floor him with her shopping basket"

   Good old days?   Fish chips & peas  for 3 people   five shillings & sixpence change out of ten bob.

JudithM

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Re: Lewis's Birmingham
« Reply #23 on: January 21, 2016, 01:26:47 PM »
What a wonderful story  :)
"I know tomorrow's gonna taste like cake"

Jools

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Re: Lewis's Birmingham
« Reply #24 on: January 21, 2016, 05:05:12 PM »
Great Yarmouth ,will look if I go, Lewis' has a lot of memories for all us brummies,I also remember the co op, system, so funny your story, it was such of its time aswell, can you imagine these days ,the shop assistant would have been arrested for child abuse, and your mom would have been tazered!! So funny all sorted out with a cup of tea!! Love it , I so miss the old days and Brum its all so different now 😪

Curious

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Re: Lewis's Birmingham
« Reply #25 on: January 21, 2016, 10:18:44 PM »
Hi new to the site. It's like going back in time. I remember shepherds pie and tea at Lewis Father Christmas and sunshine on Saturday afternoons. I left school and ended up working at Edward greys hire purchase department. We used the vacuum system there too.
How do you go about finding out about schools. I went to Main Street infants and Chandon junior then high gate girls school and finally mount pleasant but I've seen about all but Main Street. Did anyone else go there. Would be curious to share memories.

Phil

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Re: Lewis's Birmingham
« Reply #26 on: January 21, 2016, 10:29:00 PM »
Hi Curious

Welcome to you, your schools seem to be centred around the Sparkbrook Highgate area, where did you live. If you finished your schooling at Mount Pleasant after Highgate Girls closed that must have been about 1965 or thereabouts. Sorry I can't help you with the schools as I would have loved to have attended Highgate girls, but they wouldn't have me. Some silly rule about being the wrong sex.
Phil died in 2020. RIP.

townie

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Re: Lewis's Birmingham
« Reply #27 on: January 21, 2016, 11:44:06 PM »
Curious Have a look on the thread (What school did you go to)
Was it a vision, or a waking dream?

Curious

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Re: Lewis's Birmingham
« Reply #28 on: January 22, 2016, 06:44:09 PM »
Hi Phil thanks for the reply, there were teachers there who we're more male than some males I know! But I still enjoyed it. We lived in strensham road, then Erasmus road off the Stratford road spark brook, a lot of mom,s family were Mary street, hope street, gooch street etc. I know they turned Main Street infants into an Asian school. But don't know when that happened. Moved to warstock and took the bus to mountpleasant everyday until I left. Loved it there too.
Great mates and great teachers too.


There is one thing I would love to know. Does anybody remember the ice cream shop in lady pool road.. I think it was Italian, it had the most distinctive beautiful ice cream that I have never tasted since.


Again thanks Phil

Phil

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Re: Lewis's Birmingham
« Reply #29 on: January 22, 2016, 07:10:55 PM »
Curious


Burdens the ice cream makers at the junction of Oldfield Rd and Ladypool Rd have been discussed on this forum many times if you type the name into the search box on the top right of the page you will see many posts.
Phil died in 2020. RIP.

DavidB

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Re: Lewis's Birmingham
« Reply #30 on: May 09, 2016, 05:50:04 PM »
I have many happy memories of Lewis's. I started my first job at the store on 24 August 1967 - on my sixteenth birthday. I was assigned to Menswear and my station was Jumpers at the foot of the up escalator: the Miss Selfridge boutique was on the floor above. I spent many happy hours hypnotised by the Miss Selfridge girls in their chocolate brown miniskirts on the "escalator to heaven". My manager, Mr Dimbylow (a nice chap) wasn't impressed; he felt I wasn't cut out for retail!  He was right about that. 

Phil

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Re: Lewis's Birmingham
« Reply #31 on: May 09, 2016, 06:26:29 PM »
Hi David

Welcome to the forum, do you remember any of the Miss Selfridge girls on the photo at the beginning of this thread, the thing I remember most about most of them was they had quite a bob on them and thought themselves quite special, but in effect they were no different to any of the other girls who worked in the store.
Phil died in 2020. RIP.

DavidB

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Re: Lewis's Birmingham
« Reply #32 on: May 09, 2016, 06:50:33 PM »
Hi Phil

I don't recall any of the girls photographed, but it was a long time ago and I was rather shy coming from an all-boy's school.  However, I will never forget the uniform.  I worked for Lewis's for about 18 months and although it could be boring at times (and hard on the feet) sales work helped me to become more confident.  I also had the good fortune to work with a couple of people who encouraged me to improve my woeful qualifications - one O-level.  I have happy memories of my time with Lewis's - it was fun.


 

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