My Work Experiences

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Win Hilling. Stories for my Grandchildren

My Work Experiences

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I left school at the age of 13 because my sister age 27 had died suddenly and my mother was inconsolable and unable to run our shop and business. On most days my father took my mother out into the countryside to help quieten her nerves and to help to take her mind off her grief. So I was left to attend to the shop and the house which was behind and above the shop which was in Merton/Wimbledon. One large area in the shop was taken over by the birds, canaries and parrots and the rabbits and chickens which were in cages, rather like our pet shops. The other area contained all the foods and requisites of the pets. It was called a corn chandlers. My father cleaned the cages every morning and fed the pets.

I was very busy in the shop and also had to keep the house clean because the housegirl wasn’t able to come because a member of her family had a contagious disease. I remember one day when I had just scrubbed the kitchen floor my father walked across it and left footmarks. Without thinking I yelled at him and then felt distressed and guilty because we were taught to respect our parents and I felt I had done something terrible. However, Dad didn’t seem to notice, I think he might have still been in shock. I had never been taught how to cook and wondered how I could manage the evening meal, but I really enjoyed steak and kidney pie so I asked our neighbour how to cook one and I remember serving pie several times although no one complained.

Twice a week I had to pick up boxes of 3 day old chicks from the railway station. We had a lovely area in the shop for them which was cosy and heated. Some of the weaker chicks had been trampled on during the journey and I remember feeling quite sick when I had to put them out of their misery and pain.

As soon as we could we sold the shop and moved to Sutton Surrey, so that we could leave our sad memory in the past and start a new life.

Jobs were hard to find and eventually I worked in Woolworths for a while.

When I married we went to live in Chiswick, London, where I had to make new friends, but I hadn’t enough to do, so I joined classes and learned to cook and ice cakes and to do dressmaking. Early in 1938 one of my friends worked in Harrods in London and said they were taking on some staff for their annual sale. She dared me to go and apply for a job. So I went to London and sat with other applicants in a large room.

We asked each applicant as they came from the interview room how they got on and it was obvious that most of the vacancies had been filled. After a while one girl came out and said, “Unless you are experienced in selling shoes, you may as well go home, because that is all that is left.” So I decided I was just the person they needed although I had never sold shoes. Most of the other applicants left.

My interview was brief. When I was asked where I had received my shoe selling experience I said, “Oh I come from a business family and my cousin runs a big shop in Ashford Kent.” So I got the job. What I said was true, but I didn’t say that it was a general shop which sold almost everything and the shoes were mainly sand shoes.

I managed my job at Harrods quite well except on one occasion when a lady and her daughter asked for ski-boots. These were not in the sale and I had to search in the stockroom for them. I had never seen a pair of ski boots, so this was quite interesting for me.

When I took them to the ladies, the daughter took one from its box and put it on her foot. Just at that moment the floor walker in his black morning suit came forward and gushed at the ladies, "Oh Lady .…., how marvelous to see you again,” etc. etc. Then he looked down at the boot on the girl’s foot and without stopping talking to the lady, he removed the boot and put it on the girl’s other foot! Oh dear, I knew I was in trouble.

When the sale was complete, he called me into his office and really gave me a telling off. Eventually he said, “And what have you to say for yourself? Lady ….. is one of our most important customers!”

In a quiet voice I said, “Just as you arrived I looked at the boot, and had I mentioned the mistake the customer would have been embarrassed because I didn’t put the boot on the girl – she put it on herself.” That was all true. He just said, “Oh! You can go now and be more careful in future!”

When the shop closed at night all the staff had to pick up all the shoes that had been scattered all over the shop and put them into their correct boxes. Then we waited near the door until the floor walker came and gave us permission to leave. One night I decided ‘enough is enough’ and went home. Naturally I expected to be reprimanded but nothing happened.

After each sale the staff that was satisfactory, received a letter inviting them to work at the next sale. Believe me, I was very surprised to receive this invitation, and in fact I still have that letter, although I didn’t work there again.