Sir John Barker, 1st Baronet (6 April 1840 – 16 December 1914) was a British entrepreneur of the late 19th and early 20th century. He was the founder of the

Barkers Barkers or Barkers Men's Clothing is a New Zealand menswear fashion brand and retail chain. It has 31 stores around the country, including 13 in Auckland. It was established in Auckland CBD in 1972, and is headquartered in Grafton, Auckland. The ...

department store in

Kensington Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West End of London, West of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up b ...

, London, United Kingdom.

Early life

John Barker was born on 6 April 1840 in Loose, Kent, England. He grew up in Maidstone, where his father, Joseph Barker, was a brewer. He was apprenticed as a draper in Maidstone for three years.

Career

Barker began his career by working as a draper in

Folkestone Folkestone ( ) is a port town on the English Channel, in Kent, south-east England. The town lies on the southern edge of the North Downs at a valley between two cliffs. It was an important harbour and shipping port for most of the 19th and 20t ...

and

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

. In 1858, he worked for Spencer, Turner & Boldero in Marylebone, London. He subsequently worked for William Whiteley on Westbourne Grove in

Bayswater Bayswater is an area within the City of Westminster in West London. It is a built-up district with a population density of 17,500 per square kilometre, and is located between Kensington Gardens to the south, Paddington to the north-east, and ...

, London. After Whiteley refused to partner with Barker, the latter decided to open a store on

Kensington High Street Kensington High Street is the main shopping street in Kensington, London, England. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Kensington High Street is the continuation of Kensington Road and part ...

with Sir James Whitehead, 1st Baronet instead. As a result, the two men founded

Barkers of Kensington Barkers of Kensington was a department store in Kensington High Street, Kensington, London. It began as a small drapery business, John Barker & Company, founded by Sir John Barker, 1st Baronet, John Barker and Sir James Whitehead, 1st Baronet ...

. It became a public company known as John Barker & Co Ltd in 1894. Barker was an Alderman of the first London County Council and Liberal MP for Maidstone 1900–1901, and for the now abolished

constituency An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger State (polity), state (a country, administrative region, ...

of Penryn and Falmouth in Cornwall from 1906 to 1910. He was awarded a baronetcy in 1908.

Personal life and death

Barker lived at The Grange, Rye Street,

Bishop's Stortford Bishop's Stortford is a historic market town in Hertfordshire, England, just west of the M11 motorway on the county boundary with Essex, north-east of central London, and by rail from Liverpool Street station. Stortford had an estimated po ...

. Its grounds included what is now Grange Park and Broadfield. His daughter Annie married Tresham Gilbey, one of the sons of Sir Walter Gilbey. Barker died on 16 December 1914.

References

External links

*
The story of John Barker & Co Ltd, Kensington, London
from Michael Moss and Alison Turton, ''A Legend of Retailing: House of Fraser'', Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1989. 1840 births 1914 deaths People from Maidstone Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom English businesspeople in retailing Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1900–1906 UK MPs 1906–1910 Members of London County Council Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Penryn and Falmouth Progressive Party (London) politicians People from Loose, Kent 19th-century English businesspeople {{UK-baronet-stub