January 2006 marks the last opportunity for bargain hunters to visit the Barkers of Kensington, London, sales. It was with great regret that the House of Fraser announced the closure following a review of current and future requirements in the central London area.

To mark the closure, the University of Glasgow's Archive Department has launched an online gallery of images and a detailed history of the company.

The closure brings to an end more than a century of retail history but the store, and the people associated with it, will forever be remembered in the House of Fraser Group Archive held at the University of Glasgow. The Archive has existed since 1979 when the department store chain decided to centralise their heritage collections to ensure they survived for future generations. As the chain was founded in Glasgow, the best home for the resource was as a cornerstone of the University's Scottish Business Archive. The Barkers collection predominantly covers the early and mid 20th century but the overall date range of the material held is 1870 to 1988. We will be acquiring material covering the final 18 years during the next few months.

Lesley Richmond, Director of the University's Archive Services commented: "The closure of a business is always a sad occasion for all those involved. As guardians of the House of Fraser corporate memory, we feel it is important to document the contribution this store made to the lives of the people in the Kensington area. Making a small part of the collection available online will serve as a reminder of happy Christmas shopping and January sales trips. If any former staff or shoppers are inspired to come to Glasgow and consult the archives in more depth we'll be happy to help them with their research."

Photographs, building plans and promotional catalogues sit alongside minute books, sales records and advertisements awaiting use by the thousands of researchers who visit the business archive reading room every year. The facility is open not just to Glasgow University staff and students but to anyone who wants to learn more about the history of the House of Fraser Group throughout Britain.

Media Relations Office (media@gla.ac.uk)

For further information, please contact the Media Relations Office on 0141-330 3535, or Glasgow University Archives on 0141 330-5515.

The website can be found at: House of Fraser Archive

Glasgow University Archive Services acts as the guardian of the University?s collective memory as revealed in the records of management, administration, staff and students and thus protect the rights of all members of the University community. Since the transferral of responsibility for the Scottish Business Archive from the Economic History Department in 1975, Archive Services are also guardians of Scotland?s business and industrial history.

Glasgow University Archive Services celebrated their 50th anniversary in 2005. A timeline of their history is online at: Timeline as part of the 50th anniversary edition of their departmental newsletter. The Scottish Business Archive side of their operations was originally founded in 1959 by the then Professor of Economic History, Sydney Checkland.

First published: 22 December 2005