Aug 11, 2026 | Social history, Stories
How Britain coped with the 1976 potato shortage In the summer of 1976, Britain discovered the limits of its national stoicism. The drought scorched fields, potato yields collapsed, and chip shops quietly began to reduce portions or close early. It wasn’t official...
Apr 28, 2026 | Brands, Social history, Stories
“There’s no point buying £40 shoes for a £400 suit” says a respondent in a 1989 study for Adidas, who were looking to launch an international lifestyle brand (including shoes). The report, held within AMSR, summarises the UK qualitative research, and...
Mar 27, 2026 | Advertising and media, Social history, Stories
The Easter Egg market is a dynamic one – in the children’s sector in particular, the offer changes from year to year to reflect the latest trends. But how about the gender bias? The Archive of Market & Social Research offers insights from qualitative work in the...
Mar 18, 2026 | Brands, Social history, Stories
The shoe retailer Russell and Bromley has been bought by Next, following a period in administration. The business is over 150 years old, having started in 1873, but now joins other brands in a familiar path to largely disappearing off the high street. 30-year TGI data...
Feb 26, 2026 | Brands, Social history, Stories
One of the new breed of design and retail brands that emerged in the 1960s, Habitat enjoyed a longer time in the sun than many of its peer group. And it’s still around today, albeit in a somewhat different form. Founded 1964 by Terence Conran, the Habitat business...
Nov 14, 2025 | Social history, Stories
“Le Beaujolais Nouveau est arrive!” Back in the 1980s, this announcement prompted trend-loving consumers to flood to wine warehouses, off-licences and supermarkets around Britain every November, keen to pick up the first bottles of the latest Beaujolais vintage. The...
