Biddles – A Guildford Business for 140 Years – Part 2

Published on: 27 Feb, 2025
Updated on: 3 Mar, 2025

The original shop which opened in February 1885.

Part 2 of the Biddles story covers the last 40 years, from merger, premises move and the pandemic which nearly killed the business, to recovery and an expansion into the supply of artists’ materials…

In 1987, the 102-year-old stationery business of Biddles changed hands and became part of Strakers.

The managing director, Jonathan Straker, had every intention of remaining in the Martyr Road premises as the site was well known for supplying stationery and office furniture in Guildford.

The purchase allowed Strakers to expand its sales force and continue with the well-established stationery store, trading under the name Straker Biddles. However, the store had to find a new location as the old shop was too large and the building was falling into disrepair.

After looking at sites all over Guildford, the eventual new store was much closer than anticipated. The Ward Street shop, located just 50 yards away from the Martyr Road store, was found and in 1989, Straker Biddles moved in.

The old site was due to be demolished and redeveloped as offices, however, the building remained empty for many more years.

In 1997, the office supplies industry was changing and Straker Biddles merged with a company called Oyez.

OyezStraker was born (as was our blue and orange branding) and the Guildford store became one of ten across the country. As the retail side of the business changed, the difficult decision was made to close many of the other stores. Guildford was saved because, throughout the Strakers ownership, it was Guildford that would clear end of lines and clearance stock. The Guildford store was a valuable asset to the company.

Many years of successful trading followed. In 2013, the shop was once again rebranded following a purchase by the office team in 2013, bringing together all the branches of the business under one name.

The former Straker Biddles store took the opportunity to rebrand the shop “Biddles of Guildford” in recognition of the history of the original shop founded in 1885.

1993 – New era of ink

With the advent of new printing technology in 1993, such as Canon and HP cartridges, the printing industry underwent a major shift with a significant impact on the Straker Biddles store.

The traditional jobbing printer was losing ground to businesses and home users who could now print what they needed, when they needed it.

To adapt to this changing landscape, Straker Biddles began to stock increasing amounts of paper and expand their range of printer inks to keep pace with the new technology. As a result, the use of typewriters and word processors decreased rapidly, and Straker Biddles phased out their range of over 100 typewriter ribbons in favour of stocking more than 200 inkjet cartridges and laser toners.

As the demand for cartridges increased year on year, Straker Biddles became aware of the environmental impact of single-use cartridges.

In response, they started to stock compatible cartridges, encouraging their customers to bring in old printer cartridges to be recycled This led to the creation of their Printer Cartridge Recycling Scheme, which offers customers a discount on their new ink purchase when they recycle their used cartridges. The scheme has been a success and continues to this day, helping to reduce the amount of printer cartridge waste going into landfill.

2020 – Trouble with lockdown

In February 2020, a virus that had spread from China to the UK was announced on the news, and people were advised to take measures to limit its spread.

On March 23rd of the same year, the Prime Minister announced the unprecedented step of locking down the country to stop the virus from spreading further. Biddles of Guildford was advised to close for lockdown, and the staff were placed on furlough, with one key-holder retained to check on the store when required.

Given that many of Biddles of Guildford’s customers were essential workers and vulnerable individuals, the business changed to offer a telephone and email service, with daily deliveries. This was appreciated by many essential businesses, key workers, and vulnerable customers.

However, the major investor suddenly announced the closure of the business without warning. All staff were to be made redundant, with Neal Heaven and David Goddard having just seven days before the stock was to leave the site and the doors were to close forever.

After a series of frantic calls and emails, the new Biddles of Guildford, owned by Neal and David, secured a term of six months with the landlord.

Negotiations began for the shop stock, and after nearly securing a deal, Biddles was given the news that the shop would close its doors for the last time. However, that evening, Neal and David decided to make one last attempt, drafting one final email and pressing send.

Early the next morning, news came in from their old colleagues that the lorry was on its way, but the deal was done. Biddles of Guildford was saved.

To re-open, Biddles of Guildford launched a crowdfunding campaign, and with the help of many Guildford residents and businesses, it re-opened on July 1st, 2020, with the promise to offer all staff made redundant their jobs back.

July 2020 – Biddles Bounces Back

Two weeks after lockdown finished and other retailers opened, Biddles finally opened its doors at the beginning of July.

By October, the last member of the original team had returned, and now it was the beginning of a new chapter for Biddles of Guildford.

A new range of products was introduced, and customers came back, pleased to see that Biddles was still there. Inside the shop, little had changed, and customers who didn’t know what had happened would be forgiven for not realizing drama of the previous few months.

In early 2022, Biddles looked at extending its range and contemplated many options, including expanding its printing, increasing its furniture range, or investing in a new range that would complement the business.

Art materials were chosen, and over the following months, talking to customers, art teachers, and suppliers, the range was decided upon. In June 2022, we started to build our art department, which included acrylics, oil and watercolours by Winsor Newton, and a new stand from Posca pens. Art had arrived at Biddles of Guildford.

The journey continues…