A famous Birkenhead department store that many still remember from their childhood welcomed generations of customers through its doors.
A familiar sight for decades, Mr James Rostance and his wife Helen opened their first businesses at 173 Old Chester Road, Tranmere, in 1904. The shop, which originally opened as a drapery store before expanding to sell a wider range of goods, was a success and by 1906, Rostance's in Watson Street, Birkenhead, was opened.
Following the death of James Rostance in 1917, his son Alfred took over the business in 1922 and extended the premises, later opening another branch in Oxton Road, Birkenhead. Many will also remember the New Ferry Rostance's shop and buying everything from knitwear to shoes, suits and more.
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John Rostance, 90, went on to take the reins of the family business until the last Rostance's department store closed in the early 1980s. As part of the Liverpool ECHO's How It Used To Be series, we spoke to John about the family business and what life was like in the area decades ago.
John, originally from Rock Ferry, told the ECHO: "It started with my grandfather who came up from Stafford and he set up the business. He was visiting his sister in Tranmere, she had an ice-cream business.
"Birkenhead was considered at the time to be the city of the future. My grandfather and grandmother thought it was a great place to start up a business.
"He was a draper in Penkridge but was working in Wolverhampton. He set up the business on Old Chester Road in Tranmere and it there for two or three years and then he decided to open a shop in Watson Street. It's more of a residential area now but it was a hub of activity in the earlier turn of the 20th century. Everybody knew everybody."
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John's grandfather died in the First World War and from there his widow, Helen, and son Alfred carried on the business. John's father, Alfred left the Navy and later took over the Watson Street business, which he bought from his mother "bit by bit."
Decades ago, how Birkenhead looked and the shopping habits of customers were fairly different to how life is now. Before online shopping and contactless payments, customers would head to their local Rostance's to browse, use paper coupons and get their hands on the latest clothing trends or staples items for their wardrobes.
Oxton Road had a number of independent shops and the area surrounding Rostance's was busy with customers, with other department stores like Beatties and Robbs being located on Grange Road nearby. John has memories spanning back decades, from spending time at the Rostance's stores as a child to working there in later life.
John said: "I remember the Watson Street shop because my sister at one stage in the 1930s put me in the window with a ticket as up for sale. That was the main store at the time, the Watson Street shop.
"There was an outside loo we had to use. It wasn't all up to scratch in those days.
"We would sell pretty much everything - knitwear, ladies underwear, shoes, hosiery. We did a lot of business in ladies nylons when they became popular after the war.
"There were paper coupons you could buy for whatever then and paper coupons were more valuable than cash at the time. They had to be collected for people and counted so you could trade them."
John also has fond memories of Rostance's staff and customers who passed through their doors. John said: "There’s people I still remember. I've still got a book with every member of staff in when they were employed with us.
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"I remember all the staff were always very very helpful because I was thrown in the deep end myself when my father lost his manager in a motor accident in 1958. I was working in a New Ferry shop at the time and I had to take over as the manager. It was thanks to all the senior staff and also everyone else that I was able to cope."
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John son, Dave, recently posted a number of images of Rostance's in Oxton Road to the Birkenhead Memories group. Taken in 1964, they show customers at the department store and items in numerous window displays, celebrating the stores 60th anniversary.
A number of group members have since shared their fond childhood memories of Rostance's. One person said: "Worked there early 70s loved it. Staff and the Rostance family were lovely."
Another person commented: "Loved going there as a kid on Saturday afternoon." One wrote: "I remember as a kid being amazed by the way they put money in those tubes and then your change was sent back in them."
And another person said: "My parents bought me a doll's pram there in 1941 , it was to make up for having a new brother ! Rostance's must have been there a long time, they took Provident and Practical cheques, the salvation of many mums !"
The Watson Street shop closed in 1966, followed by the closure of Oxton Road in 1977 and New Ferry in 1982. John said the family loved the business and that he is pleased former customers and staff still remember it so fondly.
John said: "My father when he went on holiday, he was always happy to be back again in his own business. Having built it up from scratch, it was successful and that was quite a feather in his cap.
"It's very heartwarming when the comments are so appreciative. That's very pleasing."
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