It is Edinburgh's most famous Department Store.
Address: 48 Princes Street, Edinburgh
Contact Jenners: 0131 225 2442
Opening Times (last checked 2003):-
Mon 9am - 6pm Tue 9.30am - 6pm Wed 9am - 6pm Thu 9am - 8pm Fri 9am - 6pm Sat 9am - 6pm Sun 11am - 5pm
Jenners Edinburgh: Princes St facade © Adrian Welch
Jenners: House of Fraser
House of Fraser announced a deal on 17 Mar 2005 to buy Jenners, the Edinburgh institution: possibility of staged store refurbishment as the House of Fraser already has a shop on Princes St, but at the far west end away from the current hub (at the east of Princes St), created partly by Harvey Nichols and the St James Centre.
Jenners, 1893-95, W Hamilton Beattie, Princes St, Edinburgh.
This luxury Edinburgh shop had its shop windows and facade refurbished by Michael Laird Architects.
The Jenners facade prior to refurbishment - note the white canopies:
Jenners Edinburgh: Princes St corner, from Michael Laird Architects
Victorian Department Store, often described as the Harrods of the North, Category A, with a three-storey hall similar to Liberty's in London.
photo © Adrian Welch 270907
Jenners - Introduction:
Jenners' complex Victorian facades terminate at street level with wonderful brass base plates to the street windows complete with embossed lettering. The shop interior needs a complete remodelling to bring consistency and quality to areas such as toilet lobbies and escalators. Despite the arrival of Harvey Nichols, Jenners Edinburgh is still seen as one of the best Department Stores in Scotland.
Jenners Edinburgh: Princes St facade © Adrian Welch
Jenners - History:
Charles Jenner and Charles Kennington took over the lease of 47 Princes Street in 1838, "Kennington & Jenner" started. Their ambition was to provide the people of Edinburgh with the finest of silks and linens - in a luxurious department store - which at the time were available only in the great fashion houses of London.
Jenners Edinburgh: corner of Store © Adrian Welch
By 1860 the Jenners store had subsumed 48 Princes Street, and 2,4,6 & 8 South St. David’s Street.
Jenners Edinburgh: Princes St view from west © Adrian Welch
By 1890 Charles Jenner & Co. had expanded to 49 Princes Street, and added 10,12,14 & 16 South St. David’s Street. The building had been purchased by Charles Jenner with this Edinburgh store now the largest shop in Scotland.
On 26 Nov 1892, a fire destroys the store. The Jenners factory on Rose Street was adapted into a temporary store.
Jenners Edinburgh: corner of Store © Adrian Welch
William Hamilton Beattie is engaged in 1893 as the architect and work begins on the new store. Although retired, Jenner personally takes the greatest interest in the project. Charles Jenner died in Oct 1893 and sadly never sees the store reopen.
Jenners Edinburgh: corner of Store © Adrian Welch
A codicil in Charles' will bequeaths £8,000 towards the external decorations of the Jenners building including the provision of caryatides (feminine figures carved into columns) intended to show symbolically that women were the support of the business. These caryatides high up on the building are key to the ornate stonework's success, a piece of High Victorian indulgence.
Jenners: context from Princes Street Gardens © Adrian Welch
The new Jenners store is formally re-opened Wed 8 Mar 1895. The building is ahead of its time for Scotland, with lavish electrical lighting, hydraulic lifts and air conditioning. The old Edinburgh Stock Exchange is bought in 1903 and rebuilt as part of the store, extending it up to Rose Street. The store undergoes further extension in 1922, taking the frontage to 52 Princes Street. In 1962 the property on the south side of Rose Street was demolished, including the notorious Crane’s Bar, and a modern building for Jenners erected on the site.
Jenners Edinburgh: context from Princes Street Gardens © Adrian Welch
A refurbishment programme of Jenners occurred in 2002 culminating in the unveiling of new windows along Princes Street, returned to the 1895 design.
Jenners Edinburgh: pre-refurbishment, Princes St corner, from Michael Laird Architects
Jenners Edinburgh: Opening Times (last checked 2003)
Monday 9.00am - 6.00pm Tuesday 9.30am - 6.00pm Wednesday 9.00am - 6.00pm Thursday 9.00am - 8.00pm Friday 9.00am - 6.00pm Saturday 9.00am - 6.00pm Sunday 11.00am - 5.00pm
Contact Jenners: +44 (0)131 225 2442 fax +44 (0)131 260 2240
News excerpts re Jenners Department Store:
Jenners Edinburgh: Shop Refurbishment
Jenners' window displays to Princes St are set to change:
In Aug 2002 the old windows & entry were replaced
Jenners Edinburgh: Princes St shop windows, from Michael Laird Architects
The architects were Michael Laird Architects
Jenners Edinburgh: Princes St shop windows, from Michael Laird Architects
Jenners Edinburgh - Renewal
Jenners department store underwent a £5m refurbishment. The Princes St canopies were removed and shop displays improved:
Jenners Department Store - refurbishment: Allan Murray reportedly said that the removal of the canopy will bring in more light, in Scotland, all they canopies create is darkness; Malcolm Fraser reportedly said whatever Jenners did to its building, the mix of Georgian and Victorian architecture which it boasts means the store will always be more impressive than its modern rival across St Andrew Square, that Jenners is a fantastic building, just right for Princes Street, a wonderful rigorous building with Victorian exuberance.
Feb 2002
The Douglas Miller family has owned Jenners since 1881. However, the House of Fraser announced a deal in Mar 2005 to buy Jenners.
Jenners opened an outlet at Edinburgh Airport shortly before the Princes Street Store refurbishment. Jenners also opened a Rose Street restaurant with television celebrity chef Gary Rhodes but this closed a few years ago.
Edinburgh Shops:
British Home Stores
Burtons
Harvey Nichols
Jenners
Frasers
Buildings adjacent to Jenners:
Balmoral Hotel
Oloroso
Scott Monument
St James Centre
National Portait Gallery
Jenners Edinburgh, Refurbishment - new image on the right:
Jenners: Princes St entry, before and after, from Michael Laird Architects
Edinburgh Architecture Tours
Jenners Edinburgh - Website: www.jenners.com
Edinburgh : back to index