Croydon store is the oldest still in its original building. Frank Woolworth opened the branch himself in 1912

Welcome!

In 1896 our founder, the American Frank Winfield Woolworth, found himself on a buying trip in South London. That night he wrote in his diary "I believe a good penny and sixpence store, run by a real Yankee, would be a storm here."

He was right! And today, 111 years later, here we are planning a 100th birthday like no other.

Time is on our side ...

Every week more than five million people visit their local Woolworths, following in the footsteps of five generations. Surveys show that another forty million consider the Company to be an old friend, often part a treasured memory from childhood.

So here's a question. If you heard that an old friend you hadn't seen for ages was throwing a huge 100th birthday party, wouldn't you visit? The centenary offers a great opportunity to show the nation how much has changed - and how much hasn't. We can boast a heritage of value quite unlike any other retailer, a century of keeping prices down and bringing luxury items into the price range of ordinary people.

Our very own picture story        Woolworths' five logos over the first 100 years of trading. The diamond "W" motif (far left) was designed by Frank Woolworth himself to pass the time on a transatlantic voyage from New York to Liverpool

This website is here to help. It contains pictures, ideas and stories, range-by-range to help everyone to capitalise on the heritage and to assemble a range-to-remember for birthday year. It shows off some of the unique archive of samples, documents, media and other assets, as well as ideas to get you thinking.

The 100thBirthday site complements our customer-facing on-line Virtual Museum, which you can find at http://museum.woolworths.co.uk. It's simpler, easier to follow, has better quality images and assets and it's internally focused for our colleagues in the offices and stores. To get started, just use the menu at the top of every page.