Expo 84 was a Grantham Chamber of Trade led initiative that transformed the former Ruston & Hornsby factory on London Road into a bustling and exciting exhibition venue. The old disused factory site, now the location of B&Q’s car park, was repurposed to host what became a landmark local event, and it proved so successful that three years later Tradex 87 used the same site for an even more ambitious follow-up.
The fair showcased a wide range of local businesses and the best of what 1984 had to offer. On the technology front, Stuart Westmoreland of Market Place demonstrated the latest in viewing and hi-fi, while Grantham Organs of Wharf Road provided the latest in home entertainment in the form of the electric organ. The Chandlers stand was also among those drawing visitors in.
Several well-known local names had a presence at the fair. HH Cox was one of the few older local businesses still going strong into the 1980s. Sharpes Garden Shop, then trading from Market Place, exhibited at Expo 84 before closing in 1986, with their building later becoming a bar. Ogden Seed Stores, also in Market Place, would later become the Notions antique centre and is now a work agency. Jim Baxter, who had started out with a junk shop at the former Hand and Hart pub on Wharf Road before eventually moving into beds, was another familiar face on the floor.
The Ellerman Travel stand offered an interesting historical curiosity, with some of the fares on display actually more expensive than they would be twenty years later.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.