Henry Kingham and Sons

Henry Kingham and Sons Delivery Van
Acknowledgement to the John Lewis Partnership Archive
Henry Kingham and Sons Shop Front in 1940s
Acknowledgement to the John Lewis Partnership Archive
Kingham's Catalogue for Hampers 1938
Acknowledgement to the John Lewis Partnership Archive

Henry Kingham & Son was founded c1790 by Elizabeth Kingham in a small shop in the High Street of Watford. The Partnership purchased Kinghams in January 1961 – it then consisted of a considerable wholesale food trade with two warehouses, one at Bedford and one at Watford, together with a number of retail food shops, and a bacon smoking unit on Fulham Wharf.

The chief purpose of the acquisition was to increase the volume of the Partnership’s food buying and to see what were the possibilities of wholesale trading in food, of which Waitrose had no experience whatever.

The Partnership sold the main assets of Kinghams, including its name and goodwill, in 1963.

 

Comments about this page

  • There was a Kinghams in the Market Square in Chesham for around 40 years – from circa 1920 to 1960.

    By Eleanor Phillips (12/04/2023)
  • re closed branches ,there appears to be no reference to the following KINGHAM stores which on take over traded under the WAITROSE banner until disposed of. RICKMANSWORTH–NORTHWOOD HIGH STREET–original BERKHAMSTEAD—KINGS LANGLEY
    having worked in all these under KINGHAMsbefore joining WAITROSE this appears to be a little forotten history.

    By Eric Northwood (02/03/2017)
  • I well remember my dear late mother taking me as a child to Kingham’s store in Pinner High Street. There she would be offered a seat whilst she read out her grocery shopping list and the items would be either taken or delivered on a bicycle and front carrier. Today we shop at Waitrose and the experience though different is just as customer friendly.

    By John Hearson (13/09/2013)

Add a comment about this page

Your email address will not be published.