Kennards of Croydon: The Store that Entertained to Sell: A History of a Debenhams Store

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Alan Simpson: I used to love going out in Croydon! Worked in Allders for a while and used to go to Pals on a Thursday after work! Great nights and always rammed! Moonshine, Blue Orchid, Joe Bananas! Sadly all gone now! Do the kids of today even have anywhere to go to actually meet friends (old and new!) and have a good time. Too much ‘socialising’ is done online now I guess! Agatha Christie featured Croydon in her novel Death in the Clouds, which involves the mysterious death of a French moneylender, as her plane comes in to land at Croydon Airport. There's also a book by Freeman Wills Crofts called The 12.30 from Croydon, in which there's another peculiar fatality on a flight — this one setting off from Croydon Airport. Just as well they shut the place down, what with all those sky-high murders... As an added attraction, a pair of lion cubs were put on display for a limited time and, although too young to harm the public, I did notice at one stage the door of the large cage was kept shut with a garden broom.

Australian actor Barney Worth at the Kennards Christmas Show in Wimbledon, where he was playing the part of Santa Claus in November 1941. Worth weighed 42 stone, making him one of the largest Santas in London. The store claimed he was the largest in the world! Be this as it may, some of the animals were not always confined to their cages. In the mid-1930s a cheetah was on display in the restaurant where it, together with no doubt some slightly nervous diners, were serenaded by Ida Santerelli and her female band. Based on Frith Road in the town centre, it was thought of as a "great little shop" by customers who went in there.But Croydon did have a station called "Jolly-sailor" Jolly-sailor station in 1845, the atmospheric pumping station, with its gothic chimney/exhaust vent, in the foreground. Image: public domain Despite suffering significant damage in the Second World War, the shop battled on and stayed open until 2012, when it went into administration.

Kennards were one of the first UK business to use publicity to sell its goods. In the 1920s Kennards introduced Pony rides for children in store, which continued to run until 1966. [1]And there's so many places in Croydon which we will all remember from our younger days that no longer exist. Sadly Allders is now in the hands of the Receivers hoping for a buyer to continue the name - very sad.

A total of 850 jobs were lost and September 22, 2012 was announced as its last day of trading. Allders of Croydon by night in 1987 One of its most memorable features was the full length windows which ran the length of the store – a very unique feature at the time of its opening.

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Debbie Burgess: Yates, Joe Banana's, Allders, C&A, Woolworths, and the Blue Orchid, where I met my partner, still together 20 years and 3 children later! Read More Related Articles Two of the unique selling points of the store was the use of full-length windows running the length of the store, [3] a unique feature at the time, and an arcade (added during the 1930s) inside the store that linked different departments and showcased goods from around the world. [4] Gill Griffin: The old Kennards with its arcade and donkey rides. Grants where I had fish and chips with my nan and aunt on Saturdays. Turtles where you could buy the most unlikely items and Allders in its heyday when it was a proper department store that sold puppets and pianos. The establishment drew thousands of gig-goers over its eight-year reign, with big-name headliners including the likes of Deep Purple, Status Quo, Thin Lizzy, The Ramones and The Jam taking to the stage between 1969 and 1977.