The Morris Brothers business was founded in Tenby 150 years ago by the three brothers Morris, who had previously been department managers in a Haverfordwest agricultural store.
The business was a typical ironmongers, but also sold marine supplies, fishing tackle, fuel and some items for the holidaymakers, including beach goods.
Remarkably, many of the hardware and household items that were sold and recorded in the sales ledger from the first year’s trading in 1866 are still available in store today, including coffee pots, dustpan and brushes, rat traps, rope and many other household items.
The completed railway line from London opened in 1866, bringing many more tourists to the area, so the store in St. Julian’s Street gained even more popularity from the Victorian visitors. The original store is now the popular Hope and Anchor pub, but close by, in 1902, in the last available plot on St. Julian’s Street, Troy House was built to accommodate the growing needs of the business.
Mr. Howard Lewis, proprietor, tells how his parents, Frank and Francess Lewis, bought the business from the last surviving widow of the Morris brothers after his father had worked for the tool company John Hall Tools in the 1920s and ’30s.
“My father had been the opening branch manager in both Bristol and London, and he had to grow a moustache to hide his youthfulness! He often talked of Bristol as being the best place after Tenby that he had ever worked - probably because on his first day’s trade there were 50 gold sovereigns in the till!”.
“The decision to buy a business in Tenby was sealed by a visit on the August Bank Holiday in 1938 when my mother and father, who had arrived by train, were staggered to see cars parked nose to tail through the town and down to the harbour, proving what a thriving town Tenby was and still is.”
“My mother and father were a great team. My father was a very generous type, with strong family convictions. He had the great foresight to marry a girl who held the Pitman Secretarial College record for shorthand: 180 words a minute and typing at 110 words a minute. She would be most surprised to see all the computer keyboards in use today.”
Morris Brothers has continually evolved to meet the changing needs of its customer base, including becoming Calor Gas main agents in 1948. In the 1950s, the shop concentrated their product range on ironmongery and builders materials. At this point, an additional store was purchased in the centre of the town at Bank House, which was formerly an antiques shop. This shop, which is now the main store, has about 3,000 square feet of selling space set out over three floors.
The 1960s saw the start of the leisure industry and the position of the harbour branch accelerated a change from builders merchant to beach and leisure-orientated products for the increasingly popular tourist trade. In 1963, after a happy year working at Carpenters in Earls Court, London, Howard returned to help run the family business.
Mr. and Mrs. Lewis passed away in the early ’80s, but succession plans were well in place to ensure the continuation of the family business.
During the 1990s, the leisure side of the industry boomed with sales of clothing, including fleece-type jackets and waterproofs, providing another change to the growing range of products available. The decision to join the Home Hardware group improved stock availability and variety. In 1998, the business started sending out the ever-popular special offer catalogues. No longer was Morris Brothers perceived as the corner shop, but as a business with a large variety of stock at competitive prices, with free delivery and assembly provided as part of the service.
The increases shown after joining Home Hardware inspired Morris Brothers to take a look at the store with a more critical eye. They engaged a professional shop fitting and planning team and the result was a completely new, refreshed and modern store. On top of that, an efficient computer system and reliable staff have ensured the survival of Morris Brothers throughout 15 decades of retail boom and bust. In keeping with the family traditions of the store, Howard’s daughter Katherine joined the business in 2010 to take on a greater role in the day-to-day running of Morris Brothers.
150th Anniversary Celebrations
To mark the anniversary celebration, Howard, Katherine and all the staff would like to invite customers to come along and enjoy the festivities on Saturday, April 30.
With a whole host of activities planned throughout the day, including a raffle, outside broadcast from Radio Pembrokeshire and a museum corner, illustrating the shop’s magnificent history, it promises to be an interesting and fun day.
Katherine said: “Being the third generation retailer in our family business, I appreciate the importance of heritage, and 150 years is a great achievement for any company.”
Howard Lewis commented: “We’re a proud family of retailers and, whilst I take more of a back seat these days, I’m pleased to let my daughter Katherine take a more prominent role in the business. I’m particularly looking forward to the event as the store has played a big part in my retail career and, of course, it represents an opportunity to see some familiar customers and townsfolk.”
With so many good reasons to call in to Bank House, Howard, Katherine and the team are extending their thanks by offering some fabulous store offers, balloons, goody bags and a free raffle for all customers making a purchase. Here’s to another 150 years.