This photograph shows the interior of F.W. Bugg, a grocer located at 114
Talbot Road, Westbourne Grove in Bayswater. The store dates from the late
19th century. Many of the items were still being used up until 1970 when
the store closed.
Shopping experience
Grocers like Fred Bugg sold the essentials of daily life. Tea, flour,
sugar and rice were drawn from large containers, then weighed and wrapped
for customers. Grocers also sold firewood and paraffin and, from the late
19th century, canned and processed foods such as condensed milk and
processed fish. Grocers often lived above their premises. Late-night
opening occurred on Saturday when workers came to shop after being paid.
Shop equipment
Many grocery stores had a separate glass-fronted cash desk behind which a
cashier would sit. Cash and change would travel between the grocer, the
cashier and the customer via an overhead machine operated by a pulley
system.
