A royal legacy comes to an end
In a lot of ways, a city is akin to a living creature; growing and changing, moving toward a new version of itself at all times. London is no different.
Over the last couple centuries, London has transformed into the city we see today, but it is pointless to try and comprehend the city as it is now without first learning about how it came to be as such.
Downtown has been constantly changing over this time, even into the modern era. Where the Citi Centre (formerly the Galleria Mall) stands now, there was once the Smugglers Value Mall. The block the Budweiser Gardens (formerly the John Labatt Centre) sits on used to be more shops and buildings typical of the downtown area.
Throughout all these changes, one thing has remained constant for almost 150 years, and that is Kingsmills department store.
Located on Dundas between Richmond and Talbot, Kingsmills is a reminder of a bygone era, where customers were treated to a personal relationship with those they did business with; an era of class and service that is seldom seen in the current commercial landscape.
More importantly, the store, which is now in the process of closing after 148 years, has been passed from generation to generation of the Kingsmill family, and is now run by Timothy Frederick Kingsmill, the great-great grandson of founder Thomas Frazer Kingsmill.
It is joked that all Kingsmill men have the same initials so that monogrammed luggage can be passed down.
Timothy’s wife, Laurie, served as the head of their online operations, which started in 2001, and today is serving in a more general managerial position.
A lovely woman, Laurie spoke with a fond passion about the history of this London institution.
“The business comes first,” she said, speaking about what enabled the store to thrive over the years. “When we got married, my husband said, ‘The business comes first, family comes second.’ I found that kind of shocking.”
However, the two are inextricably linked. The store has passed from one member of the family to the next for five generations now.
The history of the building is just as interesting inside, as Laurie leads a tour around the structure. Arriving on the fourth floor, all one sees is a dark space, with nothing but the fixtures remaining.
“This was, until last week, our china department,” Laurie explained, as she described the process of consolidating all sections of the store toward the ground floor. “This was, traditionally, here we had people years ago, upholstering furniture, making hats [and] there were even dress makers who worked up here.”
Over time, as the demand for handcrafted, special made clothes and items dwindled, the family found new uses for the space available, and expanded their catalogue of goods to fit. Entering the stairwell to descend back into the used portions of the store, there sits a large glass cabinet against the corner of the landing.
“Basically, we never threw anything out.”
The cabinet, it turns out, was for a small historical collection. "It was a little bit of a history corner so customers could come up and have a look,” she said.
Other historical quirks and curiosities abound. On the door to the third floor freight elevator is a charming little memorial for a former employee. In the basement sits a very large metal safe, which, according to Laurie, was formerly on one the main floor, but fell into the basement during one of the fires. Amazingly, the safe is still in perfect working condition, though it seems that it would be next to impossible to remove it from the building now.
When asked about the decision to close, Laurie revealed it was a personal one, rather than being financially motivated. “My husband wants to retire,” was the answer.
With no obvious successor to the store (The Kingsmills’ daughter is about to go off to post-secondary), it seems like the time is right for this family to look to different things. The decision wasn’t any easy one, but it was supported by Timothy’s father, the former president who retired in 2003.
“We like to say, ‘Isn’t it amazing it’s lasted as long as it has.’ I think the other thing too is that its time for another big change for us.”
Laurie estimated that the closedown should be finished by the end of the summer, if not sooner. The landscape of downtown London will be forever affected by the Kingsmills’ legacy, even after they are gone, and one can’t help but wonder what the London of 150 years from now will look like.
Though it may not be the kind of store that caters to students, everyone should go and experience the majesty of this building before they close their doors forever.
Over the last couple centuries, London has transformed into the city we see today, but it is pointless to try and comprehend the city as it is now without first learning about how it came to be as such.
Downtown has been constantly changing over this time, even into the modern era. Where the Citi Centre (formerly the Galleria Mall) stands now, there was once the Smugglers Value Mall. The block the Budweiser Gardens (formerly the John Labatt Centre) sits on used to be more shops and buildings typical of the downtown area.
Throughout all these changes, one thing has remained constant for almost 150 years, and that is Kingsmills department store.
Located on Dundas between Richmond and Talbot, Kingsmills is a reminder of a bygone era, where customers were treated to a personal relationship with those they did business with; an era of class and service that is seldom seen in the current commercial landscape.
More importantly, the store, which is now in the process of closing after 148 years, has been passed from generation to generation of the Kingsmill family, and is now run by Timothy Frederick Kingsmill, the great-great grandson of founder Thomas Frazer Kingsmill.
It is joked that all Kingsmill men have the same initials so that monogrammed luggage can be passed down.
Timothy’s wife, Laurie, served as the head of their online operations, which started in 2001, and today is serving in a more general managerial position.
A lovely woman, Laurie spoke with a fond passion about the history of this London institution.
“The business comes first,” she said, speaking about what enabled the store to thrive over the years. “When we got married, my husband said, ‘The business comes first, family comes second.’ I found that kind of shocking.”
However, the two are inextricably linked. The store has passed from one member of the family to the next for five generations now.
The history of the building is just as interesting inside, as Laurie leads a tour around the structure. Arriving on the fourth floor, all one sees is a dark space, with nothing but the fixtures remaining.
“This was, until last week, our china department,” Laurie explained, as she described the process of consolidating all sections of the store toward the ground floor. “This was, traditionally, here we had people years ago, upholstering furniture, making hats [and] there were even dress makers who worked up here.”
Over time, as the demand for handcrafted, special made clothes and items dwindled, the family found new uses for the space available, and expanded their catalogue of goods to fit. Entering the stairwell to descend back into the used portions of the store, there sits a large glass cabinet against the corner of the landing.
“Basically, we never threw anything out.”
The cabinet, it turns out, was for a small historical collection. "It was a little bit of a history corner so customers could come up and have a look,” she said.
Other historical quirks and curiosities abound. On the door to the third floor freight elevator is a charming little memorial for a former employee. In the basement sits a very large metal safe, which, according to Laurie, was formerly on one the main floor, but fell into the basement during one of the fires. Amazingly, the safe is still in perfect working condition, though it seems that it would be next to impossible to remove it from the building now.
When asked about the decision to close, Laurie revealed it was a personal one, rather than being financially motivated. “My husband wants to retire,” was the answer.
With no obvious successor to the store (The Kingsmills’ daughter is about to go off to post-secondary), it seems like the time is right for this family to look to different things. The decision wasn’t any easy one, but it was supported by Timothy’s father, the former president who retired in 2003.
“We like to say, ‘Isn’t it amazing it’s lasted as long as it has.’ I think the other thing too is that its time for another big change for us.”
Laurie estimated that the closedown should be finished by the end of the summer, if not sooner. The landscape of downtown London will be forever affected by the Kingsmills’ legacy, even after they are gone, and one can’t help but wonder what the London of 150 years from now will look like.
Though it may not be the kind of store that caters to students, everyone should go and experience the majesty of this building before they close their doors forever.
