Queensway was a retailer in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

that specialised in the sale of carpets and

furniture Furniture refers to movable objects intended to support various human activities such as seating (e.g., stools, chairs, and sofas), eating (tables), storing items, eating and/or working with an item, and sleeping (e.g., beds and hammocks). Fu ...

. It was a pioneer of out of town shopping and one of the first retailers in the U.K. to sell directly to customers from a warehouse. It was founded in 1967 by Anthony Parish in Norwich with £50. Within a few months Queensway moved to a nearby disused warehouse. Parish's strategy was to sell carpets in the same way supermarkets sell food. The success of this approach enabled the company to rapidly expand to 26 branches in 1970 and by 1975, it had 38 branches across the country. In the mid-1970s it was due to float with an expected market capitalisation of around £7 million but due to a serious downturn in the economy the float was withdrawn. Managing director Anthony Parish was by now was suffering from ill health and, after a boardroom coup, the company was sold to

Phillip Harris Phillip Harris (born 29 September 1989) is a British former figure skater. He is a three-time British national champion (2014–2015, 2015–2016, 2017–2018) and has qualified for the free skate at four ISU Championships. Career Early ...

in 1977 and it became Harris Queensway plc. On 20 December 1985, Queensway opened a store at the

Merry Hill Shopping Centre Merry Hill (formerly Westfield Merry Hill and The Merry Hill Shopping Centre) is a large shopping complex in Brierley Hill near Dudley, England. It was developed between 1985 and 1990, with several subsequent expansion and renovation projects ...

in the

West Midlands West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...

, becoming one of the complex's first tenants and following the trend of big retail names moving to out-of-town outlets which began around this time. Within four years it was part of Europe's largest indoor shopping centre.{{fact, date=October 2021 In 1988 Harris Queensway was valued at £450 million and the company was sold to become Lowndes Queensway. Lowndes Queensway went bankrupt in 1992 as a result of the downturn in sales brought on by the

recession In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction when there is a general decline in economic activity. Recessions generally occur when there is a widespread drop in spending (an adverse demand shock). This may be triggered by various ...

, but later became part of

Allied Carpets Allied Carpets was a small retail chain specialising in floor coverings, mainly carpets (80%) and then also laminate and wood flooring and curtains, in the United Kingdom. Following financial difficulties and several changes of ownership, the co ...

External links

History of Queensway founder Anthony Royal 'Gerry' Parish

Retail companies established in 1967 Defunct retail companies of the United Kingdom 1967 establishments in the United Kingdom