Pages from the very first Argos catalogue launched 50 years ago
The catalogue was first published in 1973
Generations of kids will remember the excitement of flicking through a new Argos catalogue before their birthday and Christmas.
A staple part of many childhoods on Merseyside and beyond, we've all sat and folded page corners or circled our desired item with a mini blue pen – and if you were really organised, you wrote its number straight down on your list. This year, the Argos catalogue company, founded by Green Shield stamp boss Richard Tompkins, turned 50.
The first high-street Argos store opened on the A28 in Canterbury in July 1973 and through the decades, we've seen many crop up across Merseyside. The new concept of browsing a catalogue in-store for items that were then quickly retrieved from a backroom warehouse was an instant success, but in 2020, Argos made the decision to scrap the iconic printed catalogue after 47 years.
READ MORE: Liverpool photos sat in a drawer undeveloped for 50 years
However, thanks to the internet you can now peruse many of those classic catalogues at your own leisure. Nostalgia site Retromash.com has digitised and uploaded copies of the catalogues dating from the very first in 1973 through to 1999, the Manchester Evening News recently reported.
The items featured in that very first catalogue reveal just how much our lives and habits have changed in the last five decades. Scroll through our gallery below to browse the pages from the very first Argos catalogue half a century ago.
Join the Liverpool ECHO's memories and history WhatsApp community here.
Do these awaken any memories for you? Let us know in the comments section below.
Receive newsletters with the latest news, sport and what's on updates from the Liverpool ECHO by signing up here
-
Argos catalogue stores launched for the first time in 1973
1 of 20
-
They were a new concept in in-store catalogue shopping
2 of 20
-
Many of the items in the first catalogue reveal details of people's lives and habits 50 years ago
3 of 20
-
Many of the items, such as personal cameras, have fallen out of use with the advent of mobile phone technology
4 of 20
-
And in the 1973 there was no such thing as a flat screen telly
5 of 20
-
Do you remember the early days of Argos? Let us know in the comments section below
6 of 20
-
Smoking was still rife in the early 1970s – including on buses, in pubs, shops and cafes
7 of 20
-
Why did the alarm clock that woke you up with a brew fall out of favour?!
8 of 20
-
Every house in the '70s and '80s had a fireplace like this
9 of 20
-
The toy section was always the best bit of an Argos catalogue
10 of 20
-
Cowboys and Indians were popular
11 of 20
-
And dolls still are
12 of 20
-
Board games were family favourites
13 of 20
-
Of course unwrapping those Christmas presents needed to be caught on video camera
14 of 20
-
Slightly creepy pictures were de rigueur in '70s houses around Britain
15 of 20
-
Imagine lugging one of these up the stairs
16 of 20
-
Oh and air rifles and hand-held pistols looking like the real thing were available to buy
17 of 20
-
The home perm was popular during the decade
18 of 20
-
How snazzy is this décor?
19 of 20
-
Do these awaken any memories for you? Let us know in the comments section below
20 of 20