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Carriers of History
Discover how the items customers have used to bring their Sainsbury’s shopping home have changed over the years, from 19th-century paper egg bags to the modern 'bag for life'.
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Store Highlight: Guildford
On 16th November 1906, Sainsbury's opened its store at 148 Guildford High Street.
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Fairy Tale Tea Cards
At the beginning of the 20th century Sainsbury’s gave out collectible cards to promote its new range of teas. Find out more about this colourful and charming part of our collection.
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Christmas Pudding
Christmas lunch isn't over until we've had at least one serving of the stodgy, spiced pudding, laden with butter and suet, that is Christmas pudding - our favourite festive dessert. But how much do we know about it and how has the recipe changed over time?
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Household Goods
Nowadays Sainsbury’s sells lots of non-food products but for much of its history it focussed almost exclusively on groceries. The earliest exceptions were 'household goods', an offering which has changed significantly over time.
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Easter Advertising
Egg-xamine archive material showing how Easter at Sainsbury’s has changed over the last hundred years.
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A Brief History of Wine
Sainsbury’s began selling own-brand wines in the 1960s. Enjoy a few digitised items from our collection charting the rise of this important department.
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A History of Innovation
Sainsbury’s has always had a flair for innovation, right from the day the first store opened.
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Store Highlight: Croydon
Description of first suburban shop in Croydon and all the amazing innovations it went through over the years.
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Store Highlight: 173 Drury Lane
A description of what it was like to shop in Sainsbury's first branch and the changes it went through before closing its doors for the last time in 1958
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Trick or Treat?
To celebrate Halloween we're treating you to a selection of 1960s sweet packaging.
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Shopping patterns
Over the last 149 years the way we shop for food has changed dramatically, reflecting other social changes. Since its establishment in 1869, Sainsbury’s has adapted to meet the changing needs of its customers.