Different, more complex
Introduction
Victorian Bournemouth (235) finds that the resort’s commercial terrain conformed to that present across the country. Most enterprises consisted of single units, owned and operated by their founder and their succeeding generations. A few, however, adopted the new capital structure of limited companies, some traded on a private basis, some in public.
Victorian Bournemouth (235): commercial structures
National trends
During the Victorian period, governments took greater control of the country’s commercial sector. This continuing initiative took the form of enabling commercial initiatives while guarding against fraud, the latter often found in bankruptcies. Two planks in this central strategy consisted of joint-stock companies and the concept of limited liability. Within the latter, two categories existed. On the one hand, the shares traded amongst directors and investors alone, while on the other, public markets enabled shares to change hands. Thus, enterprises had greater access to capital, including that provided by those who used professional advisors to guide their investment decisions. A more resolute commercial structure, therefore, would have provided such investors with greater reassurance about their funds. Such companies, however, as yet, accounted for a tiny proportion of commercial enterprises, most consisting of single units, owned by the operator. Analysis of Bournemouth’s contemporary commercial terrain shows it following this overall pattern.
Local dynamics
Considerable growth in the number of enterprises at Bournemouth, decade by decade, had occurred. These covered a widening range of business categories, boosted to a great extent by suburban development. Bournemouth’s economy had originated amongst enterprises undertaken by small traders, many, if not most, of humble origin. The commercial landscape divided between holiday venues, retail outlets, and skilled artisans. Successful traders, having acquired capital surplus to their original enterprise, could invest this. Much of the money funded property development, either controlled by the single trader or in concert with others to form a ‘syndicate’. Other funds went into limited liability enterprises, having either a private or public format of share structure. By the 1890s, however, the economy included several enterprises whose origin and trading centre lay outside Bournemouth. Thus, Bournemouth’s economy consisted of local, national, and in some cases, international trading companies.
Victorian Bournemouth (235): capital structures
Private companies
Analysis of the directories available for the period 1890-1911 shows the rapid growth of private limited companies. These congregated across different business categories, but not all. They included chemists, dairy, furniture, hotels and pubs, meat and fish, laundries, and finance. Several operated as branches of national chains having origins and headquarters elsewhere. Foremost amongst these consisted: Southern Drug (chemists); Eastmans and W & R Fletcher (butchers); Leverett & Frye, Home & Colonial, International Tea (grocers); Stead & Simpson (footwear); banks and insurance companies. Plummer, Roddis, and Tyrell (drapers) operated as a national chain, part of which had consisted of an established business in Bournemouth (Tyrell). Several other limited companies originated in Bournemouth. These included: Isaac & Co (dairy); Drake Daniel, Stephenson and JJ Allen (furnishings and furniture); several steam laundry operations. The two old, long-standing pillars of the local economy – construction and boarding-houses – eschewed this new business format.
Public companies
In the 1890s, several investment opportunities occurred in the form of public companies. Some enterprises had their base in London, others elsewhere, often operating on a national scale. Examples of these include Bournemouth Electric, National Telephone, and Wiltshire and Dorset Bank. The former had a choppy start and dissolved into a national concern. In contrast, several local companies traded their shares among the public. Examples of these include the Town Hall Company, Bournemouth Steam Packet, a pair of bus companies, Stour Vale Dairy, and the two coffee tavern operations. The press reported annual meetings, directors’ names, and dividends. Thus, local audiences could follow the progress of ‘their’ companies. Some readers would have consisted of men and women who derived their income from investments. By this time, Bournemouth had many residents of this nature. Other readers, however, would have followed the companies as part of their commitment to the Bournemouth project.
Victorian Bournemouth (235): assessment
Mixed fortunes
On a qualitative assessment, some of Bournemouth’s limited companies appear to have experienced mixed fortunes. The Town Hall and Public Building company disappeared because the existing management appeared not to maximise its assets. A private syndicate with other ideas bought them, ending the company. Bournemouth Steam Packet, amidst a flurry of storms, wrecks, and sharp competition, lost its way. The two main omnibus companies lasted around a decade. Directors must have known about the danger from tramline technology, but perhaps not. Their merger prolonged hope for a few months, but directors wound up the enterprise as the metal rails cut through the streets. The Blue Ribbon Coffee Tavern Company appeared to undergo a fundamental restructuring and name change. Others, however, prospered. JJ Allen Ltd, for example, achieved fulsome success, ‘known in almost every part of the British Empire’. Gunning and George’s company later became the global enterprise Chemring.
Closed circuits
For companies originating in Bournemouth, analysis of their directors and shareholders, where known, suggests parallels with the town’s civic and community behaviour. The culture consisted of circles linking together, individuals having a common interest. Furthermore, membership in some circles overlapped with that of others. Thus, perhaps only a few people took a leading part in the town’s life, restricting access to others. The town’s success, forming part of its image and thus self-belief, occurred with little contribution from outside ideas and innovation. The mixed fortunes of some local public companies may have occurred from the myopia that success in one quarter guarantees the same elsewhere. Achievement in construction or retailing might not provide the necessary knowledge to run a steam packet line or a bus company. Thus, Bournemouth’s early strength in its closed networks may have become a liability as events moved beyond the resort’s early boundaries.
Takeaway
Victorian Bournemouth (235) surveyed the commercial terrain evident during the 1890s. It finds that enterprises perhaps adhered to the changing commercial norms wrought by the country’s governments. Nevertheless, Bournemouth’s early success, resulting in part from a strong, closed network comprised of a few people, perhaps experienced difficulties as time passed. By then, the scale of activity required a more open system, welcoming new ideas and qualified people.
References
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