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Leslie Emery
Grocer. 167 High Street. Lowestoft

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The man in the white coat is Leslie Emery.

This is one of two photos that seem to mark the opening of a new store at 167 High Street. The other photo is here.

This is a fascinating look at what grocery stores looked like before the big chains took over. The first chain, self-service grocery store in the UK was Premier Brands and it opened in London in 1951. The concept of the modern self-service grocery store took much longer to reach Lowestoft.

This photo shows how the boxes and cans (what little choice there was) were kept behind counters and you asked the grocer to hand you want you wanted to buy, where he weighed it (if necessary) and wrapped the goods up in paper if you didn't have a basket. If you look closely, you can recognise some of the brands on the cans. There is everything from Heinz Salad Creme to Campbell's soups.