history of sainsburys
A Brief History of Sainsbury’s The early years 1869-1914 John James and Mary Ann Sainsbury founded Sainsbury’s in 1869. ... World War I and the Interwar Years The interwar years, which brought depression and hardship for many, were a period of rapid expansion for Sainsburys. ... By 1939 there were 244 Sainsburys shops, all of which received daily deliveries of fresh foods from the Black friars headquarters. ... By the 1920s a typical new Sainsburys branch had six departments, offering a much larger product range than competitors. ... World War II and Post-war 1939-1969 The World War II years were extremely difficult for Sainsburys. ... The oil crisis of the early 1970s increased Sainsburys costs and fostered improved efficiency, for example through economies of scale in larger stores. Large stores offered a much larger product range, for example own-brand wines bottled at source (a Sainsburys innovation); and a much wider range of greengrocery lines and non-foods. ... Such sites made it possible for most of Sainsburys new stores to be located in, or close to, town centres. ... Sainsburys established an early lead in the introduction of in-store technology like scanning, computerised stock control and sales-based ordering: techniques, which brought it huge competitive advantage. In the decade to 1994, the choice of products offered by Sainsburys more than doubled. ... Other innovative products reflected consumers wider social and environmental concerns: Sainsburys led the way in offering own-brand phosphate-free detergents and recycled paper products and was the first British supermarket to sell Fair-trade marked products. By the end of Sainsburys 125th year, the company had 355 stores in a trading area stretching from Truro to Edinburgh. ... In 1995 Sainsburys was the first British supermarket company to offer goods for sale on the Internet. ... To meet the needs of many of its customers and those looking for a more holistic approach to healthy living, Sainsburys Supermarkets introduced, in June 2001, into all of its 450 stores a range of food and non-food products called well-being, for body and mind.