Tony Woodward was a painter and decorator and worked in the shoe industry before joining Colman’s wine department 1979 and Baby Foods in 1980. Then he worked for Kettle Chips and Grampian Foods.
Colman's
Packing baby foods, Colman’s 1969-1977
Most of my work was packing but when we were doing the triple packs where we had to fill up little bags we were swapped round every half an hour. There were three levels on the floor – the top level was where the baby food was made, the second level dealt with the food […]
Quality Control and Analysis, Colman’s 1985-95
Sarah began work in Colman’s Quality Control, trained in many areas and worked across various departments including baby-food, mustard and soft drinks. She describes the many changes at the company. I first started working at Colman’s on a temporary basis in May 1985 when I was 20. Someone had broken their ankle and I was […]
Research and development, Reckitt and Colman 1974-1998
Ken chose to work as a chemical engineer in the food industry and became a Head of Process Research before being approached to run the Colman Research & Development department in 1974. When I left school at age 16, the Youth Employment Office found me a position with HJ Heinz at Harlesden as a junior […]
Secretary in Colman’s Transport Department, 1939-1945
Eileen Durrant reminisces about her working life as a secretary at Colman’s, meeting her husband and time during the Second World War.
Statistics and early computers, Colman’s 1970-80s
Michael learned computer and people skills on the job. He was one of a team introducing computerised systems to Colman’s, but was made redundant when successful implementation of the project meant that his team’s skills were no longer needed. I left school at 15 knowing I wanted to work in an office. I applied for […]
The Colman’s Tin Shop 1935-1940, Make-a-Meal and the Shop, 1970s
Alice Parke first worked as a teenager in Colman’s and describes her many jobs there.
The Colman’s steam engineer, 1948-1983
So I got a job at Colman’s as a messenger and I would do errands on a trade bike. Once or twice a week the janitor, who was in charge of us, would get orders from staff to go into the City and buy things.
The Electrical Department and the Control Office, Colman’s 1943-1987
Colman’s was always known as a family firm and quite a number of my family worked there. My grandfather was one of a remarkable group whose service exceeded 50 years; all of them in the Tin Department.
The Printing Department, Colman’s 1960s
Christine Ellis worked for Colman’s printing department during the sixties, and it was there she met her future husband.