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This chapter presents an account of the rapid expansion of mail order in the quarter of a century after 1950. With the outbreak of war in 1939, Britain's mail order retailers were faced with severe difficulties. Not only were goods in short supply but consumption was subject to rationing and other forms of restrictions. The continuing climate of economic austerity in the immediate post-war period ensured that it was not until 1950 that mail order retailing resumed an upward momentum. Thereafter, it took off, experiencing rapid growth in the 1950s and 1960s as consumer spending reached hitherto unprecedented levels and consumers took what has been called ‘the great leap forward’ into affluence.

This chapter provides a history of British mail order retailing, tracing its development from its origins in the watch clubs established by the Fattorini family and other late-19th century pioneers through to 1939. Topics covered include general mail order retailing before 1914, mail order houses during the First World War, expansion of mail order retailing in the 1920s, and the transformation of the mail order corporate landscape in the 1930s.

This chapter discusses the importance of the relationship between mail order and ‘free’ consumer credit. British mail order houses helped their customers finance their purchases by allowing them credit, usually for a period of twenty weeks, but for up to thirty-eight weeks on some more expensive catalogue items. There was no charge to the customer for this service, the cost to the company being bundled in with the price. Here was a second feature that helped to define British mail order retailing, where installment credit sales accounted for over 80% in value of total sales in the mid-1970s.

This introductory chapter begins with a brief discussion of the development of the mail order industry in Britain. It argues that in order to set the history of the mail order sector in Britain, as well as the separate histories of the companies that comprised it, in an appropriate context, an approach is required that does more than simply trace changes in the pattern of demand and the corresponding supply-side responses. It is also necessary to explore the territory that lies between business history as traditionally practised, with emphasis on the organizational capacities of the firm, and the history of consumption, a sub-discipline that embraces an understanding of the social structures and cultural practices that have underpinned customer behaviour. An overview of the chapters included in this volume is presented.

This chapter explores the role of the spare-time agent, from the watch club organizer of the late 19th century through to the working housewife and mother a century later. By the end of the 1930s, mail order retailing had begun to deal directly with the women who held the purse strings in working-class families. Agency mail order only became a significant retail phenomenon when it tapped into the rhythms of working-class women's lives. This was made possible by the creation of systems that allowed for simple credit transactions, founded upon the payment of small weekly sums out of the limited disposable income available in the majority of early 20th-century households. Equally important, the catalogues and payments were administrated by family, friends, or neighbours, who were approachable and understood both the needs and credit limitations of their customers.

This concluding chapter presents a synthesis of the topics discussed in the preceding chapters. The development of general mail order retailing in Britain is discussed, from the late 19th century to the advent of Internet shopping. It is argued that although influenced to some extent by the American model, it is clear that British mail order retailing followed a significantly different trajectory.