Waterloo retail/shopping (1980s/1990s)

[route101]

Bit of a tangent, but when did the first Prets, Costas, Starbucks etc started to appear?

 

[nw1]

I'm sure Quicksnack as a brand persisted later than the late 80s, perhaps right up to the mid-90s, maybe even into privatisation. I could be wrong though.

I also remember logos for Travellers Fare and Quicksnack different to that one from 1984, I think more pastel shades with a "softer", more handwriting-ish font and a white/light background. Did they switch to that font late 80s / early 90s?

I'm slightly puzzled by the apparent appearance, at 1215, of an Exeter St Davids service on the departure board. In this era Exeter services went at xx10, odd hours only. The other services on the departure board are precisely what I would expect at around xx15, though.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 21 Sep 2024 ==

Bit of a tangent, but when did the first Prets, Costas, Starbucks etc started to appear?

What I do remember is that I'd never heard of Starbucks until December 1996, and I only heard it then because it was the coffee served on a United flight to San Francisco. Don't think they got a foothold in the UK until a few years into the 21st century.

Early privatisation was, I think, mostly a few standard "rail" brands, specifically known for being associated with stations. Lemon Tree was one I recall.

 

[Taunton]

1990s includes early Eurostar days.

I recall speaking with the manager of the Marks & Spencer grocery shop there, who said that Eurostar had been a significant Sunday evening boom for them, to the extent of having to bring in extra staff, because of all those returning from weekends away who needed grocery shopping before going home, all supermarkets being closed on Sundays by that time.

 

[WesternLancer]

I'm sure Quicksnack as a brand persisted later than the late 80s, perhaps right up to the mid-90s, maybe even into privatisation. I could be wrong though.

I also remember logos for Travellers Fare and Quicksnack different to that one from 1984, I think more pastel shades with a "softer", more handwriting-ish font and a white/light background. Did they switch to that font late 80s / early 90s?

I'm slightly puzzled by the apparent appearance, at 1215, of an Exeter St Davids service on the departure board. In this era Exeter services went at xx10, odd hours only. The other services on the departure board are precisely what I would expect at around xx15, though.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 21 Sep 2024 ==



What I do remember is that I'd never heard of Starbucks until December 1996, and I only heard it then because it was the coffee served on a United flight to San Francisco. Don't think they got a foothold in the UK until a few years into the 21st century.

Early privatisation was, I think, mostly a few standard "rail" brands, specifically known for being associated with stations. Lemon Tree was one I recall.

Quicksnsck did persist. The thing is I don’t think started until after TF was privatised or am I wrong? Ie it would have started on stations post 1988