Did You Know… There Was a Time When People collected 'Green Shield Stamps' to Get Their First Toaster or TV?

 

Collected from supermarkets and petrol stations, saved in books, then traded in for household goods.

Another journey, back in time to the 1960s and 70s.

Before we had loyalty cards, club points, air miles and shopper loyalty schemes, there was one system that reigned supreme for Britain’s shoppers: Green Shield Stamps.

For those of us who remember the time, these little green stamps were as much a part of everyday life as the weekly shop or the big catalogue that introduced the world of buying on credit. The stamps were everywhere and much sought after. Picked up at the till at the local shop or supermarket, or when filling up the car at the petrol station, they were tucked away into purses and wallets, taken home and stuck in a little book.

For millions of families, eventually, you would have enough for a new kettle, transistor radio or even the first colour TV. Consumerism, and the life of your dreams, was just a stamp away.

A Brief History.

What were Green Shield Stamps?

They were introduced in the UK in 1958, with a very simple idea:

Spend money = Get stamps = Stick them in a book = Swap books for goods. 

It wasn’t complicated, and millions did it. Supermarkets like Tesco, and other retailers, big and small, joined — thousands of them. Petrol stations were encouraged to take part as well. They all handed out stamps based on the amount you spent.

Each book would hold 1,280 stamps, and one stamp was equal to six pence spent. That was pre-decimalisation, 1971. In new pennies, a stamp was given for every two and a half pence.

An occasional trip to the local shop might yield dozens, while the big weekly shop could earn a sheetful. Over time, you’d collect enough sheets to fill up a Green Shield Stamp Saver Book. It was a chunky little booklet with a grid layout that, over time, got fatter and fatter as the stamps were added to it.

But adding the stamps to the book was a weekly job that no one wanted. Licking them was often given to the kids to do, with the comment, “Make sure you put the stamps in straight…” The stamps never went in straight.

It was a novelty at first, until that horrible taste of glue got the better of you. Licking several hundred stamps lost its appeal after a while. No one told us that using a damp sponge in a little soap dish was the way to go.

Once the books were full, it was time to find something in the Green Shield Catalogue. It was packed with household goods, kitchen appliances, toys, tools, ornaments, trinkets and gadgets. More or less anything you could want, assuming you filled enough books. The more expensive the item was, the more books you would have to fill.

Sometimes, the books were saved until Christmas, giving a feeling that you were saving money — or at least, not spending money on presents. For some families, a year’s spending could be seen in all those filled stamp books. Now they would be redeemed for Christmas.

Once you knew what you wanted, it was then time to go to a Green Shield Stamp redemption centre, which sounds almost religious. Most people probably used their stamps for a toaster, kettle or radio — something small but useful. It wasn’t unusual for Mam to point at something in the house and say, “I got that with the Green Shield stamps.”

I remember visiting a mate of mine, who told me that his parents were planning to buy his birthday present — a bike — with the stamps. He opened the drawer to show me all the books they had filled. Then he opened a second drawer, “Another drawer to go.” He optimistically announced. His birthday was only a few weeks away, and yes, he got the bike.

Green Shield Stamps was one of the original shop loyalty schemes. And shoppers would often choose where to buy groceries or petrol based on which place gave out the best stamp deals that week.

“There’s a double stamps offer at Tesco! I’m two books away from that crockery set.” Or “I see Esso is doing a special offer this week. If I fill the tank there, we get a bonus book!”

Those little stamps had an impact on people’s shopping habits, and the retailers understood this and used stamps to win customers long before loyalty cards made it digital.

What Happened to Them?

By the late 70s, things began to change. The usual economic and financial reasons were responsible for the demise of Green Shield Stamps.

Inflation played its part. As it rose, more books were needed to buy something. An attempt was made to lessen the impact when a second stamp was introduced, worth 10 of the original stamps. Then later, a single large stamp worth 40 standard stamps.

For retailers, profit margins tightened, and with inflation, shoppers became more price-sensitive than stamp-sensitive. Gradually, the supermarkets started dropping the scheme, preferring straightforward discounts on goods in the shops, offering lower prices. In 1977, Tesco dropped the stamps completely.

Green Shield tried to modernise — eventually converting its catalogue shops into a new business model, and in one sense, they live on today. Its catalogue stores and warehouses were rebranded Argos in July 1973. Yes, Argos, now owned by J Sainsbury PLC, was born out of the Green Shield Stamp redemption catalogue.

By the mid-80s, Green Shield Stamps were fading fast, and by 1991 the scheme was discontinued entirely.

The Legacy

In an age of digital points, cashback apps, and barcoded shop loyalty cards, there’s something charmingly unique about Green Shield Stamps. They required effort, patience, and the belief that a kettle could be earned one tiny stamp at a time.

The truth was, no one was getting something ‘for free’. Everyone paid for what they got with those stamp books — but it felt free. A classic case of clever marketing.

But for millions of us, the memory of those gluey, tacky, fat stamp books lives on.

Green Shield Stamps may have died in 1991, but many of the toasters bought with them lived on far longer.

 

 

If you liked this story, similar can be found at the links below:

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Image - Wikimedia, Geoff Charles, National Library of Wales 1969 - No changes made