In these days of Tesco Clubcard and all the other various loyalty schemes, many people have forgotten about this once popular brand.
Summary
Green Shield Stamps were introduced to the UK in 1958 by Richard Tompkins who spotted what he saw as a gap in the market having witnessed the success of a similar operation in the USA.
Tompkins bought the Green Shield name from a luggage manufacturer and founded The Green Shield Trading Stamp Company.
During the 1960’s and 70’s the stamps were given away as a loyalty bonus in shops and petrol filling stations across the UK.
Customers would save books of stamps and exchange them for goods in the company’s catalogue and collect from it’s stores.
During this peak period retailing giant Tesco were a big user of the stamps. However, in 1977, Tesco who were one of the biggest users of the scheme dropped out in favour of it’s new price cutting initiative.
In order to help Green Shield absorb the loss of it’s biggest customer the company began to allow cash and stamps to be used to buy gifts from the catalogue.
As inflation in the 1970’s began to soar so were prices in stores where the stamps were still offered. The value of the stamps began to fall. Consequently now the main user of the once popular stamps were Petrol filling stations, where they were aimed at company car drivers who had their fuel paid for. Competing filling stations would offer double, triple even quadruple stamps to entice drivers.
As sales slowed and retailers began to abandon the scheme the proportion of cash accepted for goods in the company’s catalogues and stores began to increase and the need for the stamps faded away.
Where Did They Go?
As far back as 1973 the company had began to re-brand it’s catalogues, shops and vehicle fleet to ‘Argos.’
Sale of Green Shield Stamps was suspended in 1983 and after a brief revival in 1987 the sale of the stamps, along with the brand came to an end in 1991. The Green Shield Trading Co. entered into voluntary liquidation in 2001.
Commercial Break