Our History

150 years of history

Our first shop was opened on Goose Gate in Nottingham in 1849, by agricultural worker John Boot. It started life as a herbalist store, the British and American Botanic Establishment, which catered for the industrial poor of Nottingham. After John's death in 1860, his widow, Mary, took over the management of the store with the help of her young son, Jesse.

The business continued to flourish during their partnership and in 1877 Jesse took sole control. He then pursued his plan of acquiring more shops and raised the professional standing of his stores by employing qualified chemists. Within 25 years the number of stores had risen to 250.

Building a retail empire

Soon after taking over control of the business in 1877, Jesse Boot acquired larger premises on Goose Gate, which were closer to the centre of Nottingham. Jesse also embarked on a major advertising campaign in the local press, promoting his wide range of value for money medicines and household necessities. Sales in the store doubled within a month of this campaign. In 1884 Jesse decided to duplicate the success of the Goose Gate store and opened shops in Lincoln and Sheffield. Jesse's ambition was to extend the store network right across the country and by 1914, he had opened over 550 branches of Boots throughout England, Scotland and Wales.

People first

Our people have always been the most important part of our company. Jesse and Florence Boot took a real interest in staff welfare. They ran regular social events and days out for their employees, and encouraged them to participate in company sports and social clubs. Realising the importance of recruiting and retaining trained pharmacists, Jesse developed a career structure for them, and introduced an apprenticeship scheme towards the Pharmaceutical Society's exams. The education and development of its youngest employees was important to the company and a Day Continuation School (later Boots College) was opened in 1920.

"The health and welfare of the workers and therefore their happiness, are one of the first considerations"
John Boot, 1933

25 Years of Boots Opticians

Boots Opticians is a quarter of a century old. A lot has changed since 1983 and we've enjoyed some great success stories. Now we're looking towards an even better future that continues to bring the best in eyecare to our customers.