The partnership of Thomas Jopling and Joseph Tuer would be
the beginning of the longest established department store in Sunderland. In 1804
Thomas Jopling and Joseph Tuer opened and established a drapery business at
174-178 High Street East, named Jopling & Tuer. Thomas Jopling and Joseph Tuer
owned the business until it was bought in 1882 by Stephen Moriarty Swan and
Robert Hedley. They traded as Hedley, Swan & Co. but the store was known as
Joplings.
The two storey store was fully stocked and expanding, by 1900 the staff numbered
100. On the ground floor gentlemen's clothing, ready made and tailored could be
found. The first floor was used for ladies clothing, household furniture and the
tailors workrooms. By 1919 the stores business had expanded so much they had to
move to bigger premises.
The move was made to the top of High Street West, the heart of the towns
commercial district. On the day of the grand opening the police were called in
to help control the crowds as Joplings decided to have the biggest half price
sale Sunderland had ever seen. The store also had their own money. Joplings money
was tokens that people could get and pay for over a number of weeks. You could
buy a £1 token for sixteen shillings and if you were really hard up you could
sell the token for real money, at a discounted price of course.
It was really not until 1930 that people referred to the store as Joplings as
this was when Hedley, Swan & Co. decided to stop putting their names on any
adverts for the store. The move to bigger premises also allowed the firm to
expand their trade and on the top floor they opened a restaurant. The waitresses
would wear green uniforms with pink pinafores on top.
In 1952 the ever expanding store became a limited company. In December of 1954
in the run up to Christmas Joplings were advertising that 'Santa Claus is Here',
unfortunately he did not stay long. On the Tuesday night of 14th December there
was a fire which completely destroyed the store and all of its contents, but it
would take more than a fire to stop a store like Joplings.
Going back to where they had started in High Street East, Joplings were back in
business within six weeks. This however was to be only a temporary move for the
store, as plans were already being made to start construction on a new site for
a permanent home for Joplings. The new 4 storey department store in John Street
was completed and opened for business in May 1956.
Built into the new store was also a first of its kind ever seen in Sunderland,
an escalator which at the time could only go up. Since then Joplings have also
added a clock to the outside of the building which chimes every quarter of an
hour. Joplings could now be classed as the Harrods of Sunderland, the high class
department store but with reasonable prices.
Sadly Sunderland's oldest department store
Joplings may be set to close
Joplings has been put up for sale by its owner,
the Merchant Retail Group. Even if a buyer were found, it would be the end of the
Joplings name in the city. Such a devastating blow could rip the heart out of the
multi-million pound regeneration plans for the Sunniside area of the city centre.
The Joplings announcement comes as a shock because in May, managing director
Philip Samuel told the Echo he could see no reason why the store should not
continue to operate for another 200 years. But today Merchant Retail said it has
received an offer it could not refuse for its property at Tynedale Park, Hexham.
This meant it could not afford to run its two other North East stores, including
the one which has served Sunderland shoppers since 1804.Date
Joplings New Owners
The new owners of Joplings will take over Sunderland's
oldest store on Monday, February 28, 2005. When Merchant Retail hand it over to
Liverpool-based department store operator Owen Owen, in an £8million deal. The store
held a huge clearance sale, selling off stock at up to 50 per cent off the original
price, prompting fears that the store was closing altogether. New boss David Thompson
allayed those fears, once again stating that the jobs of 181 workers, the store
itself and the 200-year-old Joplings name were safe. "The store will be
operating as Joplings. It is important, with all the history associated with
that name, that we continue to do so," he said.
Highs and lows of a famous old store
THE future of Sunderland's flagship Joplings department store is again in
jeopardy – two years after it was spared the axe. Joplings's Liverpool-based
parent company Owen Owen collapsed two years to the day after taking control of
the John Street store and saving it from the threat of closure.
OWEN Owen's takeover of Joplings two years ago seemed to have guaranteed the
long-term future of a name which has been a fixture of Wearside's retail
landscape for more than two centuries. In February 2007 Owen Owen Ltd went into
receivership putting the future of the store into doubt, although it continues
to trade for the time being.
May 2007 was a time for celebrating after a deal was reached to save Joplings.
The John Street store have agreed a deal with Vergo Retail and saved 200 years
of retail tradition on Wearside.
