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Hi everyone my internet as been down so not been able to catch up with any conversations that have been going on . Anybody remembered anything else about Loxleys I would love to go back and see the old place wonder if it as changed in side any I suppose the machines have gone and been replaced with all these computerised machines that only need one person to run them and what do they make there now anybody know?

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Hi again Elainer, I went back to Loxleys in 2004 it was their 150th anniversary and they advertised for any old employees to write in and then we were officially invited to come along and help celebrate the occasion, it was a great day and I saw a lot of old friends. We were given a guided tour of the works and my word how the process had changed. The top end of the room was occupied by a very large printing machine, bigger than anything that was there in my time, but the centre of the room was empty and then down where the comps was there were one or two folding machines. There were over 200 on the clock when I worked there and I suppose now they employ about 40-50. I understand that they mainly produce all types of greeting cards now. I remember the manager gave a speech in which he said that they had just lost a contract with Marks and Spencer, he said that they produced cards for a cost of about 12p each which were then sold for any thing between £1 and £2.50 but M & S had given the contract to China, makes you think doesn't it.

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Hi Don great to hear from you again thanks for filling me in on what Loxleys produce now but it seems such a shame that everything Loxleys stood for as now gone do you know how it all came about did Loxleys just sell up or just change it's products. So if Loxleys are not printing the posters for ROSPA I guess the contract will be with someone else and what about binders are they a thing of the past as well. I wish I had known in 2004 that you could go back I would have loved that did many turn up?catch up with you again

bye for now.

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Hi Elainer, 2004 is going back a bit but here goes, (some you may know, some you may not) not in any order: Margaret Allison, Don Allison, Derek Boucher, Jim May, Stephanie May, David Holmes, Harold Cooper, Diane Ellis, Marcia Goodison, Joan Baker, Sylvia Fearnehough, there were more but I can't remember and some I didn't know. The printing trade in general underwent its own industrial revolution with the coming of the computer and the trade was far less labour intensive, for instance the comps job disappeared, lead type is a thing of the past. Companies bought computers and proceeded to do their own printing so the amount of work that Loxleys did was greatly reduced and greetings cards are far more popular now than they ever were so they changed horses as it were. The Rospa posters I don't know whether they still do them or not coincidentally my wife did them in her time there !951-62, she was responsible for filling out the orders and dispatching them.

Edited by sharrovian

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Hi Don thank you for filling me in knew two people you said thats about all yes the computer as taken over it is very rare these days that I pick a pen up to write a letter I do everything by computer I need not ever leave the house if I did not feel like it. I am an out door person and I still like window shopping so I am not completely glued to my chair. I must have followed on some time after your wife as we got the orders in the warehouse and I use to pack the posters ready for the post van every night some times I had to mount road safety posters on wood I can not remember how I did that now . I really liked working in the warehouse better than in the binders it was quieter and I only had myself to fall out with .Talk again soon.

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My wife worked in the warehouse and packed the posters, some of them were stored in room on the right as you walked down the main room, there used to be a sink and geyser near the door when I was there. She moved into the binders and operated one of the larger folding machines until she left in 1962

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Hi Don I remember the sink and geyser as you walked down but the posters were not near there when I worked there we were in the warehouse just of the binders near the packers at the bottom end it was a cramped place we had to walk on benches to get the posters out so I was glad when they had the new warehouse built at the other end of the firm. I also worked on the large folding machine I dont have a head for hights going up the steps at the side carrying sheets of paper to fan out on top made me feel sick so it was not something I did very often. I also worked on the staple machine and forgot to take my foot of I jamed the thing up I guess I was not very good at my job looking back I seemed to always be in trouble with somebody never mind it did me no harm.

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Hi Martin1print good to hear from you again I do remember Mr Thomas he had a niece that worked in the office she was quite nice but I never got on with Mr Thomas he once told me off for crossing his office to get to his niece who sorted the orders for ROSPA as I was working in the warehouse at the time I never did it again and he always gave me a dirty look he smoked a pipe do you remember.

The secretary you are on about did think she was something you men I suppose did like looking at her but the girls use to pull her to bits behind her back as she always had alot of foundation cream on her face and you could see were it finished and the bright red lipstick.

A bit late getting on to night only my youngest son is at Hallam Uni doing Graphic Design he's on his second year so he's been working on the computer most of the night he's into Typography , Logos (identity),Sculpture,Photograhy and Illustration he's the clever one of the family so he's going to send a few cv's out this year to get some work experience if he gets paid that is even better as he puts alot of time into his work.Bye for now.

 

Nice to know your son is bright and learning graphic design. It's very rewarding to create good artwork although the print trade is suffering I think there is still work around for creating websites etc. Sorry for late reply as I was out of the country for a long while.

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Hi Elainer trying to place you long time ago though,I worked on heidelberg's under bay as apprentice to Pete Brooks with Tony 69 to 77 did you go on Tony & Brenda's engagement party Big Tree Woodseats?. My wife to be then was Carol Jackson who has just infomed me she has Irene's address if you want it, Margaret Elms was in charge of letterpress girls Anne Cath big & little Janets remember them? Merry Christmas to you all.

 

I remember well the letterpress lads under the bay. Dave Greaves, Martin Rogers, Pete Brookes, Dave Allison and Tony Marshall. Any messing about and you had the gaffer Les Hunt to deal with! Do you ever hear from Dave Greaves? I remember Carol Jackson and the Christmas lunch time booze up in "The Royal" on London Road. Hope you are keeping well.

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Hi Martine1print

Long time no talk I have not managed to get on PC son doing final projects about fish of all things we eat all the tuna up not sure what that as to do with Graphic Design. You have been out of the country somewhere nice I hope we have had some bad snow over the last few weeks I think we all wish we were somewhere else at the moment. I saw an old photo of Loxleys in the star afew weeks back just before my time as I did not know any of the girls but Mr Mckay was in the picture and he was the foreman of the binders when I was there.Bye for now.

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Fish & Graphic Design? Think we got our wires crossed somehow? No matter. I was in Singapore & Malaysia in shorts and shirt sleeves and now I wonder why I bothered to come back here in Winter? I was outside Loxleys the other day but didn't bother to go inside as nobody would remember me after all these years. I can't remember Mr Mckay but my memory is fading with my advancing years!

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Hi Martin1print,

You will most likely think I have lost my mind but when I said my son had finished his project about fish it must have been for some advertising side of Graphics thats all I can tell you it made me wonder never mind .

Why did you come back to winter here when you were out in Singapore lucky you I would have stayed put.

By the way how old are you if you do not mind me asking I am 61 to day just had my family around me cooked a meal for them now they have all gone home I am sat relaxing with a glass or two of wine best finish here or I will not be able to see ha ha.

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