Sheffield has lost several long-running and much-loved businesses in recent years, from butchers to manufacturers.
But there are many popular firms in the city which have survived for generations and are still going strong, having survived recessions, world wars and more recently the double whammy of Covid and the cost-of-living crisis.
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These are some of Sheffield’s oldest businesses which are still running, including Henderson’s Relish, where the recipe remains a closely guarded secret; Atkinsons, which is now the city centre’s last surviving department store; and Granelli’s, which is one of the nation’s oldest sweet shops.
We’d love to hear your memories of these Sheffield institutions, and any suggestions of businesses we’ve missed off our list.
13. Granelli's
Granelli's is one of the country's oldest sweet shops, which has been giving contented customers their sugar fix since 1874. It started life as an ice cream shop founded by two brothers who came to the city from Italy in the 1870s but later expanded to sell sweets. It still sells a huge range of sweets as well as serving ice cream at its long-standing shop on Broad Street, just outside the city centre. Pictured are staff at the Granelli's stall in Sheffield's old Sheaf Market in August 1985. Photo: Sheffield Newspapers
14. William Whiteley & Sons
William Whiteley & Sons, based on Rother Valley Way, in Holbrook, officially dates back to 1760 but the firm is believed to have been making scissors for even longer than that. The original William Whiteley was making scissors in a building at the top end of Forge Dam, called White Lea. He used the water to drive the hammers and grinding wheels. It was one of seven forging ponds around there at the time. When the Industrial Revolution happened, the business moved into the city centre, first to a factory at Park Hill and then to premises on Rockingham Street and Garden Street. Thomas Wilkinson, who was Master Cutler, was a maker of fine scissors and shears, including for Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Whiteley’s took over Wilkinson’s company in 1875. Photo: .
15. Maxons
Another long-running Sheffield confectioner, Maxons' origins stretch back to 1885. That's when Henry Dixon began making sweets and toffees, including Mint Rock and Cherry Balsams, which are still made today. In 1927, the MacDonald family started making sweets in Bents Green, Sheffield, with their Yorkshire Mixture and Pear Drops quickly becoming popular. The business became known as Maxons (Mac and sons). It was in the 1950s that the two firms combined with another sweet-making business, Ralph Pitchfork, to create the company as it is today, under the chairmanship of Ralph Pitchfork and then his son Roger. Today it is still based in Sheffield, on Bradbury Street, in Meersbrook, and is run by Ralph’s grandsons, brothers Chris and Richard. Photo: Simon Hulme
16. Williamson Hardware
The Williamson Hardware store on Fulwood Road in Broomhill, Sheffield, was launched on October 31, 1959, by Winifred Williamson. It began life on Crookes Road and at one point had three branches, with the second opening in Dronfield Woodhouse in 1962 and the third on Fulwood Road in 1968, though only the Fulwood Road shop survives today. It is today run by Winifred's son Andrew and grandson Mark Williamson. Photo: Chris Etchells