PO Telephones - Manchester Area directory 1948 - Co-Operative Wholesale Society
The first retail cooperative store to suceed and flourish was started in 1844 in Rochdale, a town covered by this directory as some of the entries show, but Manchester was home to the Co-Operative Wholesale Society. It's roots go back to 1863 when a large number of individual co-operative societies came together to create a single manufacturing and purchasing organisation from which they could source many of their goods and services. For most of its life the CWS was just that but in recent decades it has moved into retail services as many smaller individual societies struggled and effectively sought strength in numbers via the Co-Operative Retail Group directly under the CWS.
However at this date the entries give a good idea of the extent and bredth of the CWS's manufacturing and this was just in the Manchester area. The CWS's factories and farms were spread across England and Wales, there being a separate Scottish CWS although some products, notably tea, was 'jointly' procured.
Some of the well-known CWS products are seen here such as the Crumpsall biscuit works and the Jam factory (preserve works) at Middleton. But you can see they also brewed vinegar, made margarine and jam, milled flour, ran cotton mills and had extensive fresh produce undertakings. They even made their own umbrellas in Ardwick.
Also seen are the allied concerns of insurance, funeral services, printing and banking.
PO Telephones - Manchester Area directory 1948 - Co-Operative Wholesale Society
The first retail cooperative store to suceed and flourish was started in 1844 in Rochdale, a town covered by this directory as some of the entries show, but Manchester was home to the Co-Operative Wholesale Society. It's roots go back to 1863 when a large number of individual co-operative societies came together to create a single manufacturing and purchasing organisation from which they could source many of their goods and services. For most of its life the CWS was just that but in recent decades it has moved into retail services as many smaller individual societies struggled and effectively sought strength in numbers via the Co-Operative Retail Group directly under the CWS.
However at this date the entries give a good idea of the extent and bredth of the CWS's manufacturing and this was just in the Manchester area. The CWS's factories and farms were spread across England and Wales, there being a separate Scottish CWS although some products, notably tea, was 'jointly' procured.
Some of the well-known CWS products are seen here such as the Crumpsall biscuit works and the Jam factory (preserve works) at Middleton. But you can see they also brewed vinegar, made margarine and jam, milled flour, ran cotton mills and had extensive fresh produce undertakings. They even made their own umbrellas in Ardwick.
Also seen are the allied concerns of insurance, funeral services, printing and banking.