Step aside, Sir Stuart Rose. This week is a time for celebrating one of the greatest ever British retailers and entrepreneurs, Sir Ken Morrison.

Sir Ken steps down this week after 56 years at the helm of a business that he took over from his ill father at the age of 20. At the time, Morrison’s was an egg-and-butter seller in Bradford. Today, it is one of the big four supermarket chains. Current sales: more than £12bn. Current market value: nearly £8bn.

Nobody is going to match that in the grocery business. Ever.

After the seriously difficult patch that followed Morrisons’ acquisition of Safeway, it’s good to see that Sir Ken is going out on a high.

The best articles about Sir Ken to date are in the FT and the Telegraph.

Now I’m prompted to come up with a list of the greatest ten British retail entrepreneurs. I’ll elaborate elsewhere – in our Entrepreneurs & Lists section.

Share this story