Harry Gordon Selfridge facts for kids

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Quick facts for kids Harry Gordon Selfridge
Harry Gordon Selfridge around 1910
Born	(1858-01-11)11 January 1858 Ripon, Wisconsin, U.S.
Died	8 May 1947(1947-05-08) (aged 89) Putney, London, UK
Resting place	St Mark's Churchyard, Highcliffe
Nationality	American British
Occupation	Retail magnate
Known for	Founder of Selfridges
Spouse(s)	Rose Buckingham (m. 1890; ~~her death~~ 1918)

Harry Gordon Selfridge, Sr. (born January 11, 1858 – died May 8, 1947) was an American businessman. He became famous for founding the well-known department store Selfridges in London. For 20 years, he led Selfridges, becoming one of the richest and most respected retail leaders in the United Kingdom. People even called him the 'Earl of Oxford Street'.

Harry Selfridge was born in Ripon, Wisconsin, and grew up in Jackson, Michigan. He started working early, delivering newspapers and leaving school at 14 to work at a bank. Later, he got a job as a stock boy at Marshall Field's department store in Chicago. Over 25 years, he worked his way up to become a partner. In 1890, he married Rose Buckingham, who came from a wealthy Chicago family.

In 1906, after visiting London, Selfridge decided to invest a lot of money—£400,000—to build a new department store. He chose a spot on the western end of Oxford Street, which wasn't very fashionable at the time. Selfridges, Oxford Street, opened its doors on March 15, 1909. Harry Selfridge remained the chairman until 1941. He passed away in London in 1947 at the age of 89.

Early Life and Family
Building a Career
- Selfridges Department Store in London
Personal Life
Later Life and Passing
Writings and Famous Sayings
Television Shows
Images for kids
See also

Early Life and Family

Harry Gordon Selfridge was born on January 11, 1858, in Ripon, Wisconsin. His parents were Robert Oliver and Lois Frances Selfridge. Soon after he was born, his family moved to Jackson, Michigan. Harry's father joined the army during the American Civil War. After the war, he did not return home.

This meant Harry's mother, Lois, had to raise him on her own. Harry had two brothers, but they died when they were very young. So, Harry became his mother's only child. Lois worked as a schoolteacher and also painted greeting cards to earn more money. She later became the headmistress of Jackson High School. Harry and his mother were very close friends. She lived with him until she passed away in 1924.

Building a Career

Harry Selfridge around 1880

When Harry was just 10 years old, he started helping his family by delivering newspapers. At 12, he worked at a dry-goods store. This job helped him pay for a monthly magazine he created with a school friend, Peter Loomis. They made money by selling advertisements in the magazine.

Harry left school at 14 and found a job at a bank in Jackson. He tried to join the United States Naval Academy but did not pass the entrance exams. After that, he worked as a bookkeeper at a furniture factory. When that company closed, Harry moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan to work in the insurance business.

In 1876, Harry got a letter of introduction to Marshall Field in Chicago. Marshall Field was a senior partner in Field, Leiter & Company, one of the most successful stores in the city. This store later became Marshall Field and Company. Harry started as a stock boy in the wholesale department. Over the next 25 years, he worked his way up the company. He became a junior partner and earned a lot of money.

Harry married Rosalie Buckingham, who came from a well-known Chicago family. After they married, they lived with Rose's mother for a while. Later, they moved into their own home. The Selfridges also built a large mansion called Harrose Hall in Wisconsin. It had big greenhouses and beautiful rose gardens. Harry and Rose had five children:

Chandler Selfridge (born and died in 1891)
Rosalie Selfridge (1893–1977)
Violette Selfridge (1897–1996)
Gordon Selfridge (1900–1976)
Beatrice Selfridge (1901–1990)

Harry's mother, Lois, lived with the family throughout his marriage. While working at Marshall Field, Harry was one of the first to use the phrase "Only _____ Shopping Days Until Christmas" to promote holiday sales. This saying quickly became popular with other stores. Harry Selfridge or Marshall Field are also often credited with the famous phrase, "The customer is always right."

In 1904, Harry opened his own department store in Chicago called Harry G. Selfridge and Co. But after only two months, he sold the store for a profit. He then decided to retire. For the next two years, he spent time at his properties, especially Harrose Hall. He also bought a steam yacht, but he rarely used it. He also enjoyed playing golf.

Selfridges Department Store in London

The original Oxford Street store in London

In 1906, Harry Selfridge went to London for a holiday with his wife. He noticed that London, even though it was a big city, didn't have department stores as grand as Marshall Field's in Chicago or the famous stores in Paris.

Harry was getting bored with retirement, so he saw a great opportunity. He decided to invest £400,000 to build his own new department store. He chose a location on the western end of London's Oxford Street. This area wasn't very popular then, but it was right across from the Bond Street tube station. The new Selfridges store opened on March 15, 1909. It set completely new standards for shopping.

Selfridge had a new idea: shopping should be fun, not just something you have to do. He promoted the store a lot through advertising. The store was designed so that customers could easily find and touch the goods. It had elegant restaurants with fair prices, a library, and rooms for reading and writing. There were also special rooms for customers from different countries, a First Aid Room, and a "Silence Room." This quiet room had soft lights, comfy chairs, and double-glazed windows. All these features were meant to encourage customers to stay in the store as long as possible. Staff members were taught to help customers without being too pushy.

Selfridge even managed to get the phone number "1" from the GPO for his store. So, anyone could just ask the operator for "Gerrard 1" to connect to Selfridge's. In 1909, he suggested building a subway link to Bond Street station, but this idea was not approved at the time.

Selfridges did very well during World War I and up until the mid-1930s. However, the Great Depression started to hurt his business. Harry's lavish spending also caused him to owe a lot of money to his own store. He became a British citizen in 1937. By 1940, he owed a lot in taxes and was in debt to the bank. The Selfridges board of directors asked him to leave in 1941. In 1951, the original Oxford Street Selfridges store was bought by another company. Later, in 2003, it was acquired by Canada's Galen Weston.

Personal Life

Rose Selfridge, around 1910

Harry Gordon Selfridge's private yacht

In 1890, Harry Selfridge married Rosalie "Rose" Buckingham. Rose came from a well-known family in Chicago. Her father was Benjamin Hale Buckingham, whose family had a very successful real estate business. Rose herself was a successful property developer at 30 years old. She had inherited money and knowledge from her family. Rose bought land in Chicago and built 42 villas and artists' cottages there. Harry and Rose had five children, though their first son died soon after birth.

At the peak of his success, Selfridge rented Highcliffe Castle in Hampshire, England. He also bought Hengistbury Head, a long piece of land on England's southern coast. He planned to build a huge castle there, but these plans never happened. In 1930, he put the land up for sale. Even though he only rented Highcliffe Castle, he added modern bathrooms, heating, and a new kitchen. During World War I, Rose opened a special camp for American soldiers on the castle grounds. Harry gave up the lease on the castle in 1922.

Harry's wife, Rose, passed away during the influenza pandemic of 1918. His mother died in 1924. After Rose's death, Harry had a very active social life. He hosted many parties at his home in Lansdowne House in London and on his private yacht, the SY Conqueror. He entertained important guests like Rudyard Kipling on cruises in the Mediterranean Sea. A blue plaque on Lansdowne House notes that Harry Gordon Selfridge lived there from 1921 to 1929.

Later Life and Passing

During the years of the Great Depression, Harry Selfridge's wealth quickly decreased and then disappeared. His habit of spending a lot of money did not help. He also gambled often and lost money.

On May 8, 1947, Harry Selfridge passed away from bronchial pneumonia at his home in Putney, London. He was 89 years old. His funeral was held on May 12 at St. Mark's Church in Highcliffe. He was buried in St Mark's Churchyard next to his wife and his mother.

Harry Selfridge's children were Chandler, Rosalie, Violette, Harry Jr. (known as "Gordon"), and Beatrice. His grandson, Oliver, who passed away in 2008, was a pioneer in artificial intelligence. Another grandson, Ralph, also passed away in 2008. Ralph was a professor of mathematics and computer science and was called "the grandfather of digital simulation."

Writings and Famous Sayings

Harry Selfridge wrote a book called The Romance of Commerce. It was published in 1918 but written earlier. The book has chapters about old forms of trade, commerce in different countries like China and Japan, and famous business families.

Here are some popular quotes that people say Harry Selfridge said:

"People will sit up and take notice of you if you will sit up and take notice of what makes them sit up and take notice."
"The boss drives his men; the leader coaches them."
"The boss depends upon authority, the leader on goodwill."
"The boss inspires fear; the leader inspires enthusiasm."
"The boss says 'I'; the leader, 'we'."
"The boss fixes the blame for the breakdown; the leader fixes the breakdown."
"The boss knows how it is done; the leader shows how."
"The boss says 'Go'; the leader says 'Let's go!'"
"The customer is always right."