Interviews of Cyril and Dorothy Wise aged 84 and 77

Interview with Cyril (aged 84) and Dorothy (aged 77) Wise about their family business, Newall's toy shop, which was in Friar's Vennel, Dumfries. The business was started after Dorothy's father, who had been a baker and confectioner, was enlisted in the fire service as part of the war effort. With time on his hands he made wooden toys, especially windmills, which he then sold to a small shop in English Street. After the war, he decided to open a shop himself. The business moved into the High Street and then to the Vennel and thereafter expanded to absorb the shop next door (formerly Hay's fruit shop).

Dorothy and Cyril talk about different aspects of shop life, including: the role of craft and making things in the family; how toy buying has changed over time; working with company reps and large companies - such as Lego, Playmobile; making items in the post-war period; special events, such as a visit from the Dukes of Hazzard car; the Christmas club, (of over 1,000 members), which allowed shoppers to save and buy larger items for Christmas or birthdays; impact of the abolition of the Retail Price Maintenance; promotions and competitions; January sales and the factory and outworker system which mass produced items, some of which were then sent to the Crichton Occupational Therapy to be painted by patients there.

Dorothy had been training to be an accountant when she took over the family firm and both she and Cyril talk about the importance of good stock control and business practice. Cyril, who had come from a farming background and initially only came to work in the shop for 6 months was keen on flowers and the outdoors. In addition to running a farm, he also organised the hanging baskets outside the shop, and encouraged other businesses to do likewise. Other shops followed and the Vennel subsequently won the Dumfries Street Award. Cyril worked closely with the staff and both Dorothy and Cyril speak with affection about the staff they have worked with over the years, many of whom helped secure the reputation and success of Newall's.