History of Ryman

Henry J Ryman, founder of Ryman, opened his first store in London at Great Portland Street in 1893, and there is still a store there today. Mr Ryman opened the first ever self-service stationery shop with sales in the first week of £50.

Throughout his life Henry J Ryman recorded his thoughts and activities in his hand written diaries, which make for very interesting reading. He was very passionate about his inventory, his stores and his staff and this passion for details still exists in the company today. It reveals much about the man’s character to read about the staff welfare schemes, days out and team building experiences that were organised.

Henry Ryman; Founder

The first store on Great Portland Street

The business was successfully owned and managed by the Ryman family until the seventies. For the next 20 years it passed through several different owners, including the Burton Group, Terrance Conran, Jennifer D’abo and Pentos. In 1995 it was acquired by Chancerealm Ltd (now known as Ryman Group Ltd), where Theo Paphitis, the Dragons’ Den star and entrepreneur, is the Chairman. Kypros Kyprianou is Group Chief Executive.

In 2001 Chancerealm acquired the stationery retailer Partners with 86 stores and subsequently in 2007 purchased 61 Stationery Box stores. The businesses were combined in October 2008 to build the national stationery retail chain we know today as Ryman. There are now 237 stores employing around 2,200 people in England, Scotland and Wales.

Ryman has also been a leader in product innovation throughout its history. It opened the first ever self service stationery shop in Bond Street, London, and sales were £50 in the first week. Ryman was the first to introduce the concept of colour to filing, with both cabinets and folders. In recent years it has been at the forefront in developing and offering the latest new technology products including an unbeatable range of computer consumables and an extensive range of environmentally friendly compatible and remanufactured own-brand cartridges – many with outstanding ink capacities.

Since its conception, Ryman has been a specialist stationery store offering a wide range combining local convenience, helpful staff and specialist product knowledge in a unique service to generations of office and home office consumers.

One of the secrets of the success of Ryman has been to invest in key areas of business – people, information technology as well as the warehouse and distribution function. The company views improvement as an important aspect of its growth and has continually invested in updating its stores. Staff training is key because Ryman is famous for great customer service.

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Ryman Through the Ages

Ryman has also been a leader in product innovation throughout its history. The company was the first to introduce the concept of colour to filing systems, with both cabinets and folders. In recent years it has been at the forefront in offering the latest new technology products including an unbeatable range of computer related items, such as specialist paper, ink cartridges and USB storage. The company also offers an extensive range of environmentally friendly own-brand cartridges, many with outstanding ink capacities.

Ryman 1968

Ryman 1978

Since its conception, Ryman has been a specialist stationery store offering a wide range of products and combining local convenience, helpful staff with expert product knowledge. A typical store’s inventory has 5,500 different types of products.

Ryman 2010

From Left: Kypros, Victoria Rose,

Karen Moorhouse, Theo Paphitis

and Kirsy Allen. Pictured

at the Huddersfield Ryman

The Ryman brand values are quality, value, reliability and service. These have been developed and nurtured for over 100 years making Ryman the acknowledged leader in its field. Such high regard for customer care has allowed Ryman to build and retain a very loyal and satisfied customer base.

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