At the center of sweeping change to food retailing practices in Victorian and Edwardian England lies one man: John Pearce. An innovative businessman and a quintessential rags-to-riches success story, Pearce was at the forefront of the rise of the mass food market in London. With his catering company Pearce & Plenty, he fed millions of workers who wanted fast, nutritious, and tasty food. David W. Gutzke mines a wide range of primary sources to offer a portrait of a pivotal figure in London and a leader of the temperance catering movement who had “done more than can be readily recognised to render London a sober city.” By studying Pearce’s companies as well as those of his competitors, this book documents a half century of changing consumption habits in London.
Author(s): David W. Gutzke
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
Year: 2019
Language: English
Pages: 264
Tags: History Of Britain And Ireland, John Pearce, Mass Food Market, London
Front Matter ....Pages i-xv
Introduction (David W. Gutzke)....Pages 1-20
Pubs without Beer (David W. Gutzke)....Pages 21-48
From Philanthropy to Profits in London (David W. Gutzke)....Pages 49-67
From Penny Capitalist to Server of the Multitudes (David W. Gutzke)....Pages 69-95
Advent of the Mass Market (David W. Gutzke)....Pages 97-121
Catering Crisis in Edwardian England (David W. Gutzke)....Pages 123-152
Collapse of the British Tea Table Company (David W. Gutzke)....Pages 153-182
Starting Over (David W. Gutzke)....Pages 183-201
Into the War and Beyond (David W. Gutzke)....Pages 203-218
Conclusion (David W. Gutzke)....Pages 219-236
Back Matter ....Pages 237-257
