I was saddened to find out about that Websters, one of the last family-run businesses in central Brixton, has closed for good.
The shoe shop had served Brixton for over 140 years – it’s been here since 1850 – but with Mr Webster retiring and none of his family inclined to take over, the business had to go.
It’s a sad loss for Brixtonites, and several posters on the urban75 bulletin board shared their memories of this well-respected business:
Mr. Webster always sees to it that my baby boy gets the shoes that fit him perfectly. On the odd occasion when he did not have my boy’s shoe size in stock, he would make the effort to chase up suppliers to get the shoe and then phone us to inform us that he has it in stock. You don’t get that level of service anywhere anymore.
Very sad if he is retiring and shutting up shop.
[uk benzo]
Yep, it’s one of the places in Brixton where you invariably received polite, old world style service, heavy on the ‘thank you’ and ‘sirs’. Even if you were buying nothing as trifling as a pair of shoelaces.
Be a shame to lose the place. Brixton needs a decent stockist of Clarks Originals at the very least, let alone a well run family business like that
[tarannau]
He’s been going strong for ages – only closing because he wants to retire, and who can blame him. It did say that the reason he’s been able to do it is because he owns the building so he has been immune to the large rent hikes on the road, allowing him to continue. The reason he was useful for me is the kid’s shoe fitting service and the welly boots.
I did once get her fitted and then buy the shoes online but tbh only because he didn’t have her size in. Otherwise, in the kind of rush I’m in, I just get them there. He also always had loads of last season’s shoes in at cheaper prices. Now it’ll have to be John Edwards on Lordship Lane for us.
[gaijingirl]
That’s a real shame, the mayhem in there at the end of the summer holidays was something else and the ladies working in there always calm and slow
[Kalibuzz]
Tragic. Not least because we now have to endure Northcote Rd for kids’ shoes
[leanderman]
Have you any old photos of the store?
We’d love to publish them here! Get in touch here.
Want to share your memories?
Join the thread on urban75 forum about Websters
Websters was at 462 Brixton Road, SW9 (opposite the tube station).
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Websters was one of the best independent shoe shops in London, good stock, very nice staff, and they would search out and order in shoes specially for you and then phone to say they were in the shop. Mr Webster told me that six generations of his family had run the shop in Brixton. I would really like to see an article in South London Press about them. 140 years – they must have opened in 1872.