Woolworths in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent

The last Woolworths shop in the UK closed in January 2009 so it was brilliant to see this frontage looking fairly unchanged!

Woolworths in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent

We first spotted the store in Longton while driving through the town in 2019 and returned in 2020 for a closer look. We were very surprised to see the branding still in place.

Woolworths in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent

Woolworths in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent

Woolworths in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent

Woolworths in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent

Woolworths in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent

A Woolworths ghost sign in Stafford

Finding a Woolworths ghost sign in Stafford.

A Woolworths ghost sign in Stafford (May 2023)

While having a wander around Stafford earlier this year my eyes were drawn to this ghost sign on the front of a building on Princess Street in the town centre.

A Woolworths ghost sign in Stafford (May 2023)

The insides of the former Woolies

The old Woolworths shop location had been home to Sports Direct in more recent times

Other former Woolworths shops

It's fun seeing old & lost brands, ghost signs and retail relics. I took a look at the ghost signs on a former Woolworths store on Blackpool promenade in September 2021.

We saw a Woolworths ghost sign in Nuneaton in May 2022 too. That was a nice surprise!

Like the Blackpool store, the Nuneaton shop site had also most recently been a Poundland and a TJ Hughes.

We also saw these old Woolworths trolleys in use at Bolton Market last year!

The last Woolworths shop in the UK closed in January 2009. Every so often remnants of the brand become visible again.

We visited the Woolworths in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent in September 2020. That store still had the signage in place and we'd originally spotted it while driving through the town the previous November.

We took a look at an old Woolworths store in Brunstane, Edinburgh in August 2011. That was a Big W Woolworths store at The Jewel retail park. It's long gone now.

You can however still see an old mosaic tile logo at the former Woolworths on Stamford Street Central in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester.

There's a nice Woolworths ghost sign on an Art Deco building on Abington Street in Northampton.

Interestingly, there's a playable Woolworths Pick n' Mix Crazy Golf hole at the Teezers Retro Golf course in Coventry!

Crazy Golf at Yum Yum World in Rugby

We swung by the Yum Yum Crazy Golf course in Rugby, Warwickshire on our recent visit to the town.

Unfortunately the course and venue looked to be closed down. There is another Yum Yum World on the same street a stone's throw away on the other side.

The building used to be home to a Woolworths!

A Woolworths ghost sign in Northampton

We spotted this ghost sign on the old Woolworths store in Northampton on our recent visit to the town.

You can still see the outline of the lettering on the building on Abington Street.

Other former Woolworths shops

It's fun seeing old & lost brands, ghost signs and retail relics. I took a look at the ghost signs on a former Woolworths store on Blackpool promenade in September 2021.

We saw a Woolworths ghost sign in Nuneaton in May 2022 too. That was a nice surprise!

Like the Blackpool store, the Nuneaton shop site had also most recently been a Poundland and a TJ Hughes.

We also saw these old Woolworths trolleys in use at Bolton Market last year!

The last Woolworths shop in the UK closed in January 2009. Every so often remnants of the brand become visible again.

We visited the Woolworths in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent in September 2020. That store still had the signage in place and we'd originally spotted it while driving through the town the previous November.

We took a look at an old Woolworths store in Brunstane, Edinburgh in August 2011. That was a Big W Woolworths store at The Jewel retail park. It's long gone now.

You can however still see an old mosaic tile logo at the former Woolworths on Stamford Street Central in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester.

Interestingly, there's a playable Woolworths Pick n' Mix Crazy Golf hole at the Teezers Retro Golf course in Coventry!

Woolworths shopping trolleys in Bolton

Seeing some shopping relics on a trip to Bolton.

We're always interested in spotting remains of retailers of yesteryear and while in Bolton we remembered that we'd heard there had been some former Woolworths shopping trolleys in Bolton Indoor Market.

Woolworths shopping trolleys at Bolton Indoor Market

Luckily they were still there. An odd place for them to end up after the closure of Woolies back in 2009. But good to see they're still knocking around. Even if they have been locked up and put out of use!?

Woolworths shopping trolleys at Bolton Indoor Market

Woolworths shopping trolleys at Bolton Indoor Market

Other former Woolworths shops

It's fun seeing old & lost brands, ghost signs and retail relics. I took a look at the ghost signs on a former Woolworths store on Blackpool promenade last September.

We saw a Woolworths ghost sign in Nuneaton in May last year too. That was a nice surprise!

Like the Blackpool store, the Nuneaton shop site had also most recently been a Poundland and a TJ Hughes.

The last Woolworths shop in the UK closed in January 2009. Every so often remnants of the brand become visible again.

We visited the Woolworths in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent in September 2020. That store still had the signage in place and we'd originally spotted it while driving through the town the previous November.

We took a look at an old Woolworths store in Brunstane, Edinburgh in August 2011. That was a Big W Woolworths store at The Jewel retail park. It's long gone now.

You can however still see an old mosaic tile logo at the former Woolworths on Stamford Street Central in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester.

Interestingly, there's a playable Woolworths Pick n' Mix Crazy Golf hole at the Teezers Retro Golf course in Coventry!

Hole in Wand minigolf opening in Blackpool

A new magic-themed indoor minigolf course is opening in Blackpool.

The team at the Hole in Wand minigolf in York are opening a second venue, this one will be on Blackpool Promenade.

The indoor miniature golf course will be opening in part of the former Woolworths unit on the seafront!

We're often over in Blackpool as it's one of our local seasides. The last time I was there I was lucky enough to see the ghost signs of the former Woolies store!

Hole in Wand will be another new venue for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Head to the Hole in Wand website for more information.

Crazy Golf at Yum Yum World in Rugby

There's a Crazy Golf course at Yum Yum World in Rugby, Warwickshire.

A big thanks go to my fellow fan of retail history Mason Moore for letting me know about the Crazy Golf course at Yum Yum World in Rugby, Warwickshire.

Yum Yum Crazy Golf is an indoor course within Yum Yum World - a sweet shop, soft play centre, arcade and laser tag venue in Rugby town centre.

Mason tells me that the building Yum Yum World is in was once the town's Woolworths.

Check out the Yum Yum World website for more information.

Yum Yum Crazy Golf is another course for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Woolworths ghost signs in Blackpool

A look at some ghost signs on a former Woolworths store on Blackpool promenade.

I was recently in Blackpool and while walking along the seafront saw the ghost signs of an old Woolworths.

The shop was most recently a Poundland. Before that it had been a TJ Hughes.

Two ghost signs for the price of one

Note the Covid-19 sign on the left. This itself is a bit of a ghost sign these days as little notice is taken of the warning anymore

I'm a big fan of ghost signs

Other former Woolworths shops

It's fun seeing old & lost brands, ghost signs and retail relics. We saw a Woolworths ghost sign in Nuneaton in May this year. That was a nice surprise!

Like the Blackpool store, the Nuneaton shop site had also most recently been a Poundland and a TJ Hughes.

The last Woolworths shop in the UK closed in January 2009. Every so often remnants of the brand become visible again.

We visited the Woolworths in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent in September 2020. That store still had the signage in place and we'd originally spotted it while driving through the town the previous November.

We took a look at an old Woolworths store in Brunstane, Edinburgh in August 2011. That was a Big W Woolworths store at The Jewel retail park. It's long gone now.

You can however still see an old mosaic tile logo at the former Woolworths on Stamford Street Central in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester.

Interestingly, there's a playable Woolworths Pick n' Mix Crazy Golf hole at the Teezers Retro Golf course in Coventry!

Packri Monster game at Retro Replay

We spotted this nice old handheld game from Bandai on display in the window of the Retro Replay Arcade, Gaming Lounge & Bar at the Castle Quarter shopping centre in Norwich last month.

Check out that Woolies price sticker on the box too

It's one of a number of retro gaming items in the window at the arcade bar.

Visit the Retro Replay website for more information.

Woolworths in Nuneaton

Finding a Woolworths ghost sign.

We were surprised to see a Woolworths ghost sign while walking through Nuneaton town centre!

The sign was above the store's former entrance on Queens Road.

Social distancing signage alongside Woolworths branding - not something I ever thought I'd see

The shop was most recently a Poundland and before then had been a 99p Stores and a TJ Hughes.

It's always fun seeing old & lost brands, ghost signs and retail relics.

You can see some of Poundland's 'Sorry We Have Closed' messaging on the shopfront. Interestingly one of our local Poundland shops in Stockport has recently closed and where the signage has been removed you can see a British Home Stores ghost sign

Other Woolies

The last Woolworths shop in the UK closed in January 2009 so it's always nice when remnants of the brand become visible again.

We visited the Woolworths in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent last September. That store still has the signage in place and we'd originally spotted it while driving through the town the previous November.

We took a look at an old Woolworths store in Brunstane, Edinburgh in August 2011. That was a Big W Woolworths store at The Jewel retail park. It's long gone now.

You can however still see an old mosaic tile logo at the former Woolworths on Stamford Street Central in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester.

Interestingly there's a Woolworths Pick n' Mix Crazy Golf hole at Teezers Retro Golf in Coventry!

A retail time machine

Today is Pretend to be a Time Traveler Day.

I pretend to be a Time Traveler quite a bit by hunting out relics of the past that can still be seen today.

Old UK shop brands from my (time) travels

If you could once again shop at a long lost store which one would it be?

Lost shops

Relics from a lost time.

Kwik Save in Barrow in Furness, Woolworths in Longton, Toys R Us in Preston, Tandy in Hitchin, RadioShack in St Annes on the Sea and Blockbuster in Manchester

Which lost brands do I need to track down next?

Old Woolworths sign in Ashton-under-Lyne

Finding an old mosaic tile logo at the former Woolworths on Stamford Street Central in Ashton-under-Lyne.

This branch of Woolies opened in 1927. It closed in the 1960s.

The building is now a charity shop for the Wooden Canal Boat Society.

I found out about this old logo on the excellent Woolies Buildings blog.

It's great to look up, down and all around while out exploring as you can see so many interesting things.

You can see still other remnants of Woolworths on the UK high street if you know where to look.

We visited the old Woolworths in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent earlier this month. It's one of the few former Woolworths shops that has not been occupied since the brand's demise in January 2009.

We also spotted an old Woolworths store in Brunstane, Edinburgh on a minigolfing trip back in August 2011. That was the Big W Woolworths store at The Jewel retail park.

Woolworths in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent

A look at the old Woolworths in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent.

Anyone want some Woolies Pick n' Mix?

A view of the shopfront on Market Street

The last Woolworths shop in the UK closed in January 2009 so it was brilliant to see this frontage looking fairly unchanged!

Lovely to spot this extra piece of old branding hidden in plain sight on the shopfront

It won't be like that for too much longer though as work is going on inside the unit and it'll soon be a totally lost store.

A look inside the store

A view down the side of the store in Longton Shopping Centre

The secondary entrance / exit

Woolies in Longton

We first spotted the store in Longton while driving through the town last November. We were very surprised to see the branding still in place.

Woolworths Big W

We had a look at an old Woolworths store in Brunstane, Edinburgh back in August 2011. That was the Big W Woolworths store at The Jewel retail park.

Woolworths Pick n' Mix Crazy Golf

A look at the Woolworths Pick n' Mix Crazy Golf hole at Teezers Retro Golf in Coventry.

The last Woolworths shop in the UK closed in January 2009 so we were amazed to see there was a sign still up at the old Stoke-on-Trent store last year.

There's a Woolworths-themed miniature golf hole at Teezers Retro Golf course in Coventry, we played that course in April 2019.

We also saw the remains of the Woolworths store in Brunstane, Edinburgh in 2011.

Woolworths in Brunstane, Edinburgh

A look at an old Woolworths store in Brunstane, Edinburgh.

The abandoned Woolworths store in Brunstane, Edinburgh in August 2011

My recent revisit to the old Blockbuster Video store in Fallowfield, Manchester reminded me of the old Woolworths shopfront we saw in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent last November. That in turn prompted me to look in our archives for the photos I took of the abandoned Big W Woolworths store at The Jewel retail park next to the railway station in Brunstane, Edinburgh, Scotland from 2011.

A closer look at the old entrance

Brunstane railway station on the left is dwarfed by the old abandoned Woolworths store on the right

The building is now home to The Range.

The last Woolworths

The last Woolworths shop in the UK closed in January 2009 so we were amazed to see the sign was still up at the Stoke-on-Trent store last year.

Ghost signs

We see a lot of ghost signs on shops and building on our travels. Many of these are from decades ago and they help tell the story of an area.

Unfortunately in the coming months and years we are likely to see a number of other brands disappear.

In addition to these Woolworths shops and the Blockbuster Video store we've seen the remnants of retail brands from recent years including Tandy in Hitchen, RadioShack in Lytham Saint Annes and Kwik Save in Barrow-in-Furness.

Do you have a favourite brand from years gone by? Are the remains of an old brand still visible on a building where you live or work? Do let me know.

Woolworths Pick n' Mix

Interestingly there's a Woolworths-themed miniature golf hole at Teezers Retro Golf course in Coventry, we played that course in April last year.

A loop-di-loop obstable on a Pick n' Mix minigolf hole

The British High Street, November 2019

Spotting a dead brand on a high street.

On my travels I always keep my eye out for interesting sights and while Emily and I were driving through Longton in Stoke-on-Trent I spotted a Woolworths!

Woolworths in Longton

The last Woolworths shop in the UK closed in January 2009 so we were amazed to see the sign was still up.

The Woolworths on Market Street in Longton closed its doors for the final time on the 30th December 2008.

Looking online the former shop had an 'interesting' and 'alternative' use earlier this year!

On a related old retailer note I recently had a look at the old Blockbusters store in Fallowfield, Manchester.