FOUNDER HISTORY

In the beginning The Asquith family (W.R. Asquith) ran a butcher’s shop in Knottingly, West Yorkshire, which was eventually expanded to seven shops. The two sons of W.R. Asquith, Peter and Fred, were actively involved in the family business and were later to become co-founders of Asda. At the same time during the 1920s, a group of enterprising West Riding dairy farmers joined forces under the banner of Hindell’s Dairy Farmers Ltd. These included the Stockdale family (A. Stockdale).

Through a process of acquisition and diversification, a new public company was formed in 1949 – Associated Dairies & Farm Stores Ltd, with Arthur Stockdale as Managing Director. During the 1950s and early 1960s, Associated Dairies had expanded the number of pork butchery shops (under the Farm Stores fascia) and had also created the Craven Dairies brand for its cake shops and cafes. The son of Arthur Stockdale, Noel (later to become Sir Noel Stockdale) met and struck up an immediate rapport with the Asquith brothers. He went on to become the other co-founder of the future Asda, in a meeting that would change the way we shop forever.