The Carpetbaggers of St James’s
Meeting in London this week, my old colleague and chum John reminded me of the sheer wastage in our advertising agency. Affectionately known in the industry as ‘The Grocers of St James’s’, our large agency was indeed based in the heart of St James’s. ‘The Grocers’ handle was because the agency’s client list comprised mainly famous global grocery brands.
The wastage mentioned were not groceries, but fine Wilton carpet. The two of us reprobates regularly ‘bagged’ and carried home rolls of quality used but unwanted carpet, by train.
John carpeted two large houses, I carpeted three.
We were carpet baggers.
- Category: True Stories Told As Fiction
- Tags: ‘Bagging’ = claiming, grabbing, (English slang) as in ‘bagging a bargain’.
10 comments add one below
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VerityAlways over 2 years ago
None wasted!
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Neville Hunt over 2 years ago
We hated waste... and had both bought houses beyond our means! Great on the outside, but do-it-yourself on the inside!
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Neville Hunt over 2 years ago
Btw... St James’s is a very posh area of London's West End. Walking round with rolls of carpet under your arms was simply ‘not done’!
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VerityAlways over 2 years ago
Fixer-upper!!
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Neville Hunt over 2 years ago
I’ve never stopped. My motto is always ‘I could do that!’
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VerityAlways over 2 years ago
Well your never going to get the stamp of approval from elites
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Neville Hunt over 2 years ago
Elites-schmelites! Who cares?
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VerityAlways over 2 years ago
None bother :)
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Jamie Clapperton over 2 years ago
Considering going carpetless due to a threadbare stair issue but may take a leaf out of your book Neville.
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Neville Hunt over 2 years ago
Do Jamie... there is so much wastage all over the place. (I have been known to go skip (dumpster) raiding. In fact I’m looking at a beautiful chair I fished out of a skip outside the Comedy Theatre in the West End... then I did it up. The late Steve McBrevity took the piss out of me as I put it in the back of his Saab, but he did give me a lift home with it. And then was jealous after I’d transformed it!)
