Corporate

Company history

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• About Morrisons: freshness, service and value

  We are the UK’s fourth largest food retailer with 403 stores. Our business is mainly food and grocery – the weekly shop. Uniquely we source and process most of the fresh food that we sell though our own manufacturing facilities, giving us close control over provenance and quality; and we have more people preparing more food in store than any other retailer.
  
  Every week nine million customers pass through our doors and 124,000 colleagues across the business work hard each day to deliver great service to them. With competitive prices and hundreds of special offers, we are proud to save our customers money every day.

  Take a look at over 100 years of supermarket history below.

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  Celebrating British

  March 2008 – Sir Ken Morrison steps down as Chairman

  After 55 years of service, Sir Ken Morrison retires after being honoured with an award for Outstanding Contribution to Retail at the Retail Week Awards.

  There are currently more than 370 Morrisons stores across the UK, welcoming around 9 million shoppers each week. The company currently employs more than 114,000 members of staff in stores, factories, distribution centres and head office administration.

  March 2008 – Morrisons is Retailer of the Year

  The judges’ decision to give Morrisons the top prize at the Retail Week Awards is thanks to the successful marriage of “the chain’s traditional strengths as a grocer with great marketing and operational practice.”

  March 2008 – Morrisons offers 100% British meat

  Morrisons is the only top supermarket in the UK in which all of the fresh beef, lamb and pork is now 100% British sourced.

  December 2007 – First retailer to use regional flour in bread

  To cater for the demand in locally sourced food, Morrisons is the first retailer to offer in-store produced ‘regional’ bread, using wheat grown in the surrounding area of the store.

  November 2007 – Commitment to selling 100% British fresh lamb

  Morrisons is the first supermarket to commit to selling 100% British fresh lamb throughout the year in our stores nationwide.

  November 2007 – North Yorkshire range is launched

  Morrisons introduces over 35 locally produced fresh foods into its stores across North Yorkshire.

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  Fresh choice for you

  September 2007 – A new look store in Scotland

  Morrisons opens the first of its smaller format stores in Erskine, Scotland. Featuring the full range of Market Street fresh food, it provides a blueprint for future expansion.

  September 2007 – Morrisons is first for flowers

  Morrisons wins three awards at the Retail Industry Awards: Fresh Flower Supermarket of the Year, Training Initiative of the Year and Store Manager of the Year.

  July 2007 – Morrisons is a fresher choice

  A new advertising and branding campaign is launched, reflecting the fact that Morrisons makes and prepares a wider range of fresh food in-store every day than any other supermarket.

  July 2007 – Sir Ian Gibson appointed as non-executive Deputy Chairman

  Following the announcement that Sir Ken Morrison is standing down as the Chairman of the Company, Sir Ian Gibson is appointed as non-executive Deputy Chairman of the Group.

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  Innovation and new faces

  June 2007 – Morrisons wins at The Grocer awards

  Picking up accolades for customer service and product availability, Morrisons is lauded by prestigious industry magazine The Grocer for a commitment to putting customers first.

  May 2007 – Raising awareness about recycling

  Morrisons introduces Recyclopedia, a new labelling scheme for its own-brand packaging to help improve recycling habits.

  March 2007 – Martyn Jones joins the Board

  Starting his career with Morrisons back in 1990, Martyn Jones is now responsible for all aspects of trading and supply chain operations in his new role as Group Trading Director.

  January 2007 – Launching new compostable packaging

  Morrisons has introduced compostable packaging to its organic fresh produce range, made from sugar cane fibre, wood pulp (cellulose) and GM free starch, and preventing 27 tonnes of plastic packaging and four and a half tonnes of moulded fibre from going to landfill each year.

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  New headquarters

  September 2006 – Voted Seafood Retailer of the Year 2006

  Morrisons is awarded Seafood Retailer of the Year at the Retail Industry Awards, singled out for the dedicated and professional service of our in-store fishmongers, as well as having the best quality fresh seafood available.

  September 2006 – New fish labelling programme

  Morrisons is the first supermarket to use an innovative labelling scheme to tell consumers more about the fish they’re buying – supported by the Marine Conservation Society. Along with the scientific name of each fish, the label will also give the origin of the fish (where it was caught, or farmed) and the catch method.

  June 2006 – Appointment of Marc Bolland as new Chief Executive

  Marc Bolland, previously CEO of Heineken N.V., succeeds Bob Stott as Chief Executive of the Morrisons Group, taking responsibility for the Group’s overall commercial and strategic development and delivering the Optimisation Plan.

  April 2006 – Morrisons moves to a new Head Office

  Some 1500 Morrisons employees move into a new 331,000 sq ft Head Office building on Gain Lane in Thornbury, Bradford.  

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  Becoming the UK’s 4th largest supermarket chain

  March 2006 – The UK’s first BioEthanol E85 filling pumps

  Morrisons opens the UK’s first BioEthanol E85 filling pump, tying in with the first deliveries of the Saab 9-5 BioPower flex-fuel car. Starting at the Albion Way, Norwich site and expanding to ten petrol forecourts altogether.

  November 2005 - Conversion programme complete

  In November 2005, Morrisons completes the process of converting Safeway stores to the Morrisons format, the biggest retail conversion exercise ever undertaken in the UK. During the conversion process, over 11,000 jobs were created and more than 50,000 employees underwent training.

  October 2005 – Richard Pennycook appointed as Group Finance Director

  Richard Pennycook joins the Morrisons Board from RAC Plc.

  June 2005 – Morrisons acquires and expands abattoir in Turriff

  Morrisons acquires Kepak Buchan, the Turriff-based abattoir and plans to expand the 200-strong workforce.

  May 2005 – Morrisons acquires Rathbone bakery operation

  Morrisons acquires three factories from Rathbones. The buyout of the plants in Middlesbrough, Lydney and Wigan saves 400 jobs.

  March 2004 – Safeway becomes part of the Morrisons family

  Morrisons completes the takeover of Safeway, creating the UK's fourth largest supermarket group. To serve the enlarged group, Morrisons acquires an additional fresh produce packhouse and distribution centre at Thrapston in Northamptonshire.

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  Going national

  February 2004 – First store opens in Scotland
  

  In February the company’s first store in Scotland opens successfully at Kilmarnock. 

  2001 – Morrisons joins FTSE 100

  Following a 35 year record of sales and profit growth since going public in 1967, Morrisons joins the FTSE 100 for the first time in April 2001.

  November 2000 – First store opens in Wales
  

  Our first Welsh store opens at Rhyl.

  January 2000 – Ken Morrison awarded a Knighthood

  Ken Morrison is awarded a Knighthood in the 2000 New Year's Honours List, for services to food retailing.

  1999 – 100th store opens in centenary year

  Centenary year is celebrated by opening the 100th Morrisons store at Nelson.

  1998 – First store opens in the South

  In October 1998, Morrisons opens its first store in the south of England in Erith, Greater London.

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  Expanding beyond Bradford

  1997 – Second distribution centre

  Gadbrook Park in Cheshire becomes operational and Wakefield 41 is developed to include a frozen food depot.

  1990 – New fresh food warehouse and distribution site

  Wakefield 41 is extended to include chilled storage and an ambient storage area for produce, as well as a bread warehouse.

  1988 – New purpose-built distribution centre

  The first Morrisons distribution centre, Wakefield 41 (situated close to the M1 motorway), goes into operation.

  1980 – Fresh food production begins

  In August the Farmers Boy purpose-built fresh food factory begins trading as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Morrisons.

  1978 – Takeover of Whelan Discount stores
  

  Following the takeover of Whelan Stores, Morrisons operates in Lancashire for the first time.

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  Starting from a Bradford market stall

  1976 – New produce depot opens
  

  The Cutler Heights produce packhouse opens in Bradford.

  1971 – New Head Office in Bradford
  

  The Hilmore House office, warehouse and factory complex opens in Bradford.

  1967 – Morrisons becomes a public company
  

  Ongoing expansion and plans for further growth lead the company to go public in 1967. The share offer is 174 times over-subscribed as more than 80,000 investors try to purchase shares.

  1961 – First supermarket opens
  

  "Victoria”, the company's first supermarket, is opened in Bradford in 1961. The former cinema is converted into 5,000 sq ft of retail space selling fresh meat, greengrocery and other provisions, with free parking available.

  1958 – First town-centre shop opens
  

  After moving from market stalls to counter service, progress is such that in 1958 a small town-centre shop is opened. With three checkouts it is the first in Bradford to offer self-service and to have prices on its products.

  1899 – Stall opens in Bradford Market
  

  It was in 1899 that egg and butter merchant William Morrison began work to create the company we know today. From a stall in a Bradford market came the inspiration to innovate and lead the way in supermarket retailing.

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