Bejam was a British frozen food retailer founded by

John Apthorp John Dorrington Apthorp (born 25 April 1935) is a British businessman specializing in frozen food and alcoholic beverages, as well as a philanthropist. Career He first enjoyed success as a founding member and managing director of the family ...

in 1968, based in

Stanmore Stanmore is part of the London Borough of Harrow in London. It is centred northwest of Charing Cross, lies on the outskirts of the London urban area and includes Stanmore Hill, one of the highest points of London, at high. The district, which ...

History

In 1968, the concept of selling only frozen foods was a novel idea at the time, and Bejam grew out of Apthorp's existing family business of ''E. A. D. Apthorp'', potato merchants who delivered in and around Edgware and

. Bejam also sold electrical appliances with the Bejam brand name, including freezers,

refrigerators A refrigerator, colloquially fridge, is a commercial and home appliance consisting of a thermally insulated compartment and a heat pump (mechanical, electronic or chemical) that transfers heat from its inside to its external environment so th ...

, microwave ovens and

dishwashers A dishwasher is a machine that is used to clean dishware Tableware is any dish or dishware used for setting a table, serving food, and dining. It includes cutlery, glassware, serving dishes, and other items for practical as well as dec ...

. Bejam was named after the family's beach hut whose name was an acronym for Brian, Eric, John and Milly and Marion, the names of the Apthorp family members. Bejam bought the

Victor Value The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...

chain of supermarkets from Tesco in 1986 and ''Wizard Wine'' in 1987. In January 1989, Bejam was bought by its rival Iceland, despite still being a success and being three times bigger than the Iceland chain. The shops were rebranded to carry the "Iceland" name.

References

Bibliography

* Adrian Room, ''Corporate Eponymy: A Biographical Dictionary of the Persons Behind the Names'', Page 17, McFarland & Co, 1992, * Adrian Room, ''Dictionary of Trade Name Origins'', Page 38, Routledge, 1982, * David Boylan, Antony Head, ''Corporate Finance: Principles & Practice'', Page 314, Pearson Education, 2007, Retail companies established in 1968 Companies disestablished in 1989 Companies based in the London Borough of Harrow Defunct supermarkets of the United Kingdom 1968 establishments in the United Kingdom 1989 disestablishments in the United Kingdom {{UK-retail-company-stub

History

See also

References

Bibliography