Indeed 'Nothing over Sixpence' was the brand essence of the British Woolies that saw the chain grow from a single store in Liverpool's Church Street in 1909 to a national institution with 768 outlets by World War II. The decision to suspend the sixpenny maximum was only taken as a last resort at the height of the Battle of Britain in 1940. The new Woolworths that emerged after the war had no upper limit, but continued to offer unbeatable prices on an ever-expanding range.

But, after demerger, for a while the value message took a back seat. The new Kids and Celebrations offer was principally focused on aspirational products. It targeted young families, rather than the traditional value-based formula. While most prices were competitive, some of the new ranges were distinctly up-market. For example most of a new selection of Greetings Cards was more fashionable, and more expensive. Similarly, new fashion-led home adornment lines were outstanding value, but were pitched at a more discerning customer than the bin bags and clothes pegs that they replaced.

The High Street stores' reputation for value diminished. Surveys showed that a growing number of shoppers rated pound shops, Wilkinsons, and even the supermarkets to be better value.

When Trevor Bish-Jones joined Woolworths as CEO in March 2002,
he told viewers of a corporate video that seven million customers visited the stores each week

By 2007 the number had fallen to four and a half million.
Put another way, a thousand less customers visited the stores each day than the last.

After two years of profit decline the Chairman, Gerald Corbett, decided it was time to act, parachuting in new talent to bolster the Board. His choice of Tony Page, headhunted from the Non-Food Portfolio at Asda to be 'Managing Director - Commercial', was well received by the media, who rated him 'quite a catch'.

Page explained to a packed meeting at the firm's Marylebone Road HQ that, for him, the Woolworths name had always stood for value. But recently product availability on the counters had been weak and the value-for-money message had faded. He believed that the situation could be redeemed by sharper retail discipline and, crucially, by tackling a major shortcoming in the range construction. Rival firms had established ultra-cheap value own-labels known as 'low entry price point ranges', leaving Woolies behind.

Drawing on his experience at Asda, Tony Page evangelised the steps necessary to develop the range. He asked his Buyers to work closely with their suppliers to ascertain the key cost drivers in making goods for Woolies. If Buyers had asked for something costly or complex to be done, they should re-think, and if the supplier had ideas about cost-cutting, they should listen.

Products should be specified with 'no frills' but be of decent quality. To receive orders each supplier had to guarantee availability against a forecast of anticipated sales.

Not a single point of the message was new. It repeated the basic principles that the High Street chain's founder had followed 98 years earlier.

The approach can be illustrated by a simple Light Bulb. Sales had fallen over the years. The MD's solution was to specify a bulb that emitted the same amount of light, and lasted for the same amount of time, but could be sold much more cheaply. He then bought in depth and made sure the line stayed in stock.

The WorthIt! bulb was slightly smaller than a traditional lamp, but shoppers still bought vast quantities. Members of the environmental group Greenpeace were livid when the incandescent bulbs were sold for 20p. They set up a picket outside the firm's HQ. Page harnessed the passion, engaging the protestors and enlisting their help in a fight against tariffs on low energy bulbs entering the EU. The next season he offered the 'green' stick bulbs for 50p each, a full pound cheap than anywhere else. It seemed that the spirit of Frank Woolworth had returned.

Most items in the WorthIt! range were basic, and functional rather than elegant. Bold displays and jaw-drop prices encouraged customers to buy on impulse. Gardening gloves were a typical line. They were a quarter of the previous price, but contributed the same cash profit.

Despite the low ticket prices, the Buyers were able to come up with some innovative designs. As well as reintroducing cheap pocket money toys, they came up with WorthIt! lines that were bright and eye-catching. To everyone's surprise, many older shoppers bought a toy windmill design on a long red stick. When asked if they were for a grandchild, the responded 'no, for the vegetable patch !'

Similarly, a magnetic fishing game proved a family favourite. The 'quintessentially Woolies' line was cheap to make, well presented, and fun to play with.

WorthIt! sweets and drinks were another surprise hit. In a market dominated by big name brands, and with pic'n'mix already a firm favourite, sales of bagged confections from British manufacturers rocketed. Bags of Mint Imperials overtook the combined sales of the branded equivalent and the equivalent pic'n'mix line within days of their launch.

Although the WorthIt! launch came too late to avoid the first annual loss at Woolworths since 1910, the concept found favour with investors and the press, generating high expectations for an extended range when it hit the shelves in the Spring of 2008.

Behind the scenes the Buying team had leveraged their muscle in the Far East and the expertise of the Group's Buying Office, Woolworths Group Asia Limited, to develop bolder, bigger ticket products at the same jaw-drop prices as the original million selling range. The extended offer consisted of more than a thousand lines. At the launch these were given extra space at the front of the store, allowing customers to browse the entire WorthIt! range from the same display.

Among the new lines from the Far East were Kettles, Toasters and Irons. They were plain white and very basic. But the initial £5 price still allowed a £1 margin. Other winners included upright vacuum cleaners (£20), Microwave Ovens (£30), Radios and Televisions (£5-£100). Spotting the value a few entrepreunerial customers bought several of each and sold them at a profit in Ebay auctions.

Blank CDs and DVDs and packs of jewel and library cases sold in such large quantities that specialist retailers had to introduce similar lines to compete. An innovative four-pack of DVD-Rs for 99p even hit sales in the pound shops.

The extended range boosted weekly WorthIt! sales towards £2m during the Spring of 2008, with more to come.

EUK initially resisted a request to develop a WorthIt! music label and a selection of 20 track compilation CDs for £1, 40 track double discs for £2 and a range of Kids DVDs for £2 to £5. Page promised and later delivered a sales bonanza, selling the products from bright red cardboard shelving at the front of the stores.

In another controversial move, for the first time in a generation Buyers were asked to source a selection of non-Ladybird children's clothing basics. The WorthIt! lines were made to lower quality standard, without the traditional double-stitching and deep colour dyes.

A brief spurt of TV advertising ensured a sell-out within days, and generated a sales uplift right across the store. The budget lines left customers asking both 'How do Woolies sell so cheaply?' and 'How can they afford Jackie Chan?'

In early 2008 Woolworths signed a partnership arrangement with Somerfield. Under the deal mini-Woolies stores appeared as concessions in surplus space in a small group of the chain's supermarkets.

Somerfield also asked to stock a selection of WorthIt! products in the promotional aisle of a larger number of stores. Sales were good and negotiations to extend the arrangement were in progess when external events intervened.

Somerfield joined The Co-operative, placing the plan on hold while the two grocers were integrated. Before that work had completed, Woolworths had disappeared from the High Street. In a number of towns around South East England, the tables were turned as the Co-Operative took on former Woolworth buildings.

Shortcuts to other Exhibits in the Original Virtual Museum

2000s Gallery

2000s Overview    Death by Demerger    New values and a new direction    Visit a Big W store

Market Towns and City Centres     The Smaller Stores    Multi-Channel Retail    Wholesale & Media    WorthIt! Value Comeback

Launch of the Virtual Museum    Meet the team    The Lighter Side    Wooly & Worth    Collapse and Rescue

Museum Navigation

Home Page    Recent History Gallery     Visit the new Woolworths on-line