Selfridge Provincial Stores

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Selfridge Provincial Stores was a holding company for a group of department stores in the United Kingdom. It was created by Selfridge & Co. in 1926 and ran until 1940. The move was urged by financier Jimmy White, who convinced Harry Gordon Selfridge to reorganize the business. White based his plan on Clarence Hatry’s Drapery Trust. The new company linked Selfridge’s drapery shops and created a strong vehicle for new acquisitions. It opened with working capital of about £3.3 million. Stores kept their local names but were grouped under the SPS banner, and the group used the successful marketing methods of Selfridges in Oxford Street.

The first big purchase was the Bon Marché group in south London, owners of Pratts of Streatham, Barrett Brothers of Clapham, Quin & Axten, and the Brixton flagship. H. Gordon Selfridge Jr. became managing director. A year later Cole Brothers of Sheffield joined. By 1929, Selfridges’ trading activities formed the largest retail group in Europe.

By the early 1930s the empire began to struggle. With World War II, Harry Selfridge left Britain for America. In 1941 his title of president was removed, and he was ousted from the Selfridges board. The SPS group was reduced to sixteen stores and was sold to the John Lewis Partnership in 1940.