Bristol shop owner celebrates 50th anniversary

Derek Knapman has run Lion Stores since 1972

The owner of one of south Bristol's most well-known shops is celebrating 50 years in the hardware trade this month.

Derek Knapman has worked at Lion Stores in North Street, Bedminster, since 1972, starting as a young boy.

"I would come home from school to help out whenever I could. I was born on this road and I'm proud to still be here," said Mr Knapman.

"It's the fiercely independent spirit of Bedminster that keeps customers coming back for more."

50 years ago, when Mr Knapman's father bought the store, the main employer in the area was the Wills tobacco factory.

"We'd get all the Wills' girls come down and I'd hate serving them as they'd always make me blush," he remembered.

His shop stock has also evolved to keep pace with modern buying demands.

"When my parents ran the shop, we used to repair a lot of mechanical lawnmowers.

"We also used to buy nails in 25kg crates, now I buy them in 2kg bags because nobody buys them any more."

'Take each day as it comes'

Mr Knapman also has the odd celebrity buyer, though he admits he doesn't realise who some of his customers are.

"One of the builders working nearby told me that Love Island's Siânnise Fudge was in recently. She gets her bin bags from me.

"In my dad's era, we had weightlifter Precious McKenzie come by too," he said.

"I never even thought about working here for 50 years - I look back at the last five decades and wonder where it's all gone.

"We've been through three recessions and possibly another one soon and we just have to take each day as it comes," he said.

Simon Dicken, chair of the Bedminster Business Improvement District, said Mr Knapman's shop was a "staple of the neighbourhood."

"Anyone who is local to Bedminster is more than a customer to Derek, they are often his friends," he added.