A Sheffield Hallam University Thesis
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Business Enterprise, Consumer Culture and Civic Engagement, 1890s-1930s: Sheffield Entrepreneur, John Graves. RICHARDSON, Rachael Available from the Sheffield Hallam University Research Archive (SHURA) at: http://shura.shu.ac.uk/24459/ A Sheffield Hallam University thesis This thesis is protected by copyright which belongs to the author. The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author. When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given. Please visit http://shura.shu.ac.uk/24459/ and http://shura.shu.ac.uk/information.html for further details about copyright and re-use permissions. Business Enterprise, Consumer Culture and Civic Engagement, 1890s-1930s: Sheffield Entrepreneur, John Graves. Rachael Deirdre Richardson A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of Sheffield Hallam University for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy October 2018 i Abstract This thesis examines the activities of Sheffield business man, civic figure and philanthropist, John George Graves from the 1890s-1930s. The original contribution and aim of this thesis is to address a missing piece of historical analysis concerning this businessman’s activities, his contributions to the early development of British mail order and consumer culture and his civic and philanthropic engagements in the city of Sheffield. The thesis consists of seven chapters which are thematically rather than chronologically structured. Chapter one explores the roots of British mail order. It compares and contrasts its development with its American counterparts and evaluates the programmes and initiatives of the three leading British entrepreneurs, J. G. Graves, the Fattorinis and William Kilbourne Kay. Chapter two continues this theme by examining the firms’ attempts to address the competition of urban shopping developments, their use of agents and advocates and the agents’ association in the development of ‘consumption communities’. While chapter three focuses on Graves’ programme of credit, its association with the promotion of self-betterment, self-gratification and its relationship with the rise of suburbia, chapter four examines how Graves reflected issues of gender in his marketing rhetoric. It considers how the firm represented men and women in its advertising narrative, how that narrative reflected issues of separate spheres and how it accommodated the demands of the fashion conscious lower middle class consumer. Chapter five examines the firm’s relationship with the British Empire. It explores how the firm attempted to augment its profits and portfolio through an imperial market, how empire was reflected in its sale of commodities and how its advertising rhetoric had the capacity to reflect an imperial ideology related to issues of race, cultural differences and separate identities. Chapter six concentrates on Graves’ business welfare programme. It explores his initiatives alongside those of Cadbury, Leverhulme and Rowntree and argues that the businessmen shared the same approach and values. In addition, the chapter provides evidence that Graves’ introduction of his workplace pension scheme pre-dated those of his business contemporaries. Continuing with this theme on welfare, the final chapter focusses on Graves’ civic activities. It explores how his entrance into the political and philanthropic arenas shared similarities with his predecessors and how such entrances had been paved through the course of British history. It also examines Graves’ progressive and liberal approach as a philanthropist and civic figure along with the contributions he made to the city of Sheffield and the benefits he bestowed upon its citizens. ii Table of Contents Abstract………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………ii Acknowledgments………………………………………………………………………………………………………………vi Index of images………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….vii Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..1 Overview………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….1 Methodology and Sources……………………………………………………………………………………….2 Objectives and Synopsis of Chapters………………………………………………………………………..4 Chapter 1 - The Development of Mail Order: A Transatlantic Perspective…………………………..15 Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………………………………15 The Birth of American Mail Order …………………………………………………………………………..16 Mail Order – A British Perspective ………………………………………………………………………….24 ‘A Business turn of Mind’: Sheffield Entrepreneur, John George Graves …………………30 J. G. Graves: Politics, Patriotism and Profits…………………………………………………………….38 J. G. Graves and the Post Office Dispute………………………………………………………………….40 Summary…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………45 Chapter 2 - Advertising the Advertiser: Agents, Advocates, Catalogues and Counters..………49 Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………………………………49 Catalogues and Counters………………………………………………………………………………………..50 Agents and Advocates: Pitheads and Public Houses………………………………………………..59 The Agent and the Penny Capitalist…………………………………………………………………………62 From Aberdeen to Exeter: A Business of Recruitment.……………………………………………64 Women: The Unofficial Agent…………………………………………………………………………………66 Agents, Advocates and the Development of Consumption Communities………………..68 Summary…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………73 Chapter 3 – Captivating an audience…………………………………………………………………………………..76 iii Introduction..………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 76 A Business of Mail Order: J. G. Graves, Credit and Consumption…………………………….77 A Consultant for Personal Growth: Concepts and Consumption……………………………..85 Captivating an Audience: An Object Lesson of Britishness………………………………………89 J. G. Graves: Selling to Suburbia………………………………………………………………………………94 Suburbia: Consumption, Controversies and J. G. Graves.………………………………………102 Summary………………………………………………………………………………………………………………105 Chapter 4 – Mail Order and Gendered Representations…………………………………………………..107 Introduction..……………………………………………………………………………………………………….107 Fashioning Freedom? A Gendered Approach to Advertising..……………………………….108 Complying with Nineteenth Century Domestic Ideology?.......................................113 Fashion, Fripperies and Freedom: Mail Order and the Representation of Women.117 An Appreciation of Sophistication: Language and Labels……………………………………..122 Bibs, Braces and Bowler Hats: J. G. Graves and the Male Consumer…………………….125 Titles, Labels and the Concepts of Class……………………………………………………………….131 Summary……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..135 Chapter 5 – J. G. Graves: A Dutiful Servant of Empire……………………………………………………….137 Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………………………….137 Business and Politics: Trading with the Empire..……………………………………………………140 A Modernising Approach: The Service and Foreign Department of J. G. Graves…….143 Imperial Persuasion: The Opportunities of Advertising………………………………………….146 Imperial Persuasion: Service to the Colonies….……………………………………………………..148 Imperial Persuasion: Patriotism and Politics………………………………………………………….152 Imperial Persuasion: The Grandeur and Minutiae of Consumption.………………………156 Imperial Persuasion: Consuming Identities……………………………………………………………162 Consumption and the Imperial Citizens of the Future……………………………………………165 iv J. G. Graves: An Ambassador of Empire…………….…………………………………………………170 Summary………………………………………………………………………………………………………………172 Chapter Six – Occupations, Opportunities and Business Welfarism..…………………………………175 Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………………………….175 Occupations, Opportunities and Women of the Workplace.…………………………………175 A Programme of Business Welfarism: Pensions, Poverty and Providence……………..182 Business Welfarism: Productivity, Profits and People…………………………………………..193 Beyond the Factory Gates.……………………………………………………………………………………199 Summary……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..202 Chapter Seven – J. G. Graves: Sheffield’s Fairy Godfather?..................................................204 Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………………………….204 Sheffield Light and Enlightenment………………………………………………………………………..205 J. G. Graves: From Pedlar to Philanthropist…………………………………………………………..211 Summary……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..219 Main Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………………………………………221 Bibliography…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….227 v Acknowledgments I would like to thank Sheffield Hallam University for giving me the opportunity to undertake this programme of study and particularly Professor Clare Midgley and Alison Twells who encouraged me to pursue this research following my MA dissertation. I would also like to thank (again!) my Director of Studies, Alison Twells and Supervisor Nicola Verdon, whose support, encouragement, constructive criticism and reassurance kept me going and believing in myself. I must also give particularly thanks to my friend Andy Messer, who first alerted me to this missing piece of Graves’ history. Thank you to the university’s unsung hero, Bev Chapman, who works incredibly hard behind the scenes trying to keep both staff and students in some semblance of order! Also thank you to Sheffield Local Studies Library and Sheffield Archives and particularly Pete Evans for his support and encouragement, Roger Fairman at the University of Worcester, staff at Port Sunlight and Worcester Archives and Eric, Ted and Dave, retired employees of J. G. Graves, who allowed me to interview them. Finally I have to thank my family and friends, including my fellow PhD student,