Your memories: 'You had to dress smart in Jenners'

WHEN 15-year-old Muriel Henderson (nee Pearce) landed a job in one of Edinburgh's most prestigious department stores she could hardly believe her luck.

Taking her first steps into Jenners as an employee, she looked every bit the part of perfection in her immaculate dress and shiny shoes.

"You always had to dress smart if you worked in Jenners," 78-year-old Muriel from Livingston explains. "My mum used to make all my outfits and I think that was part of the reason why I got the job! I was always like a new pin."

Muriel's parents had encouraged her to stay on an extra year at Niddrie Marischal School, meaning she left at 15 eager for her first taste of the real world.

Although she worked for a brief period in a post office, her sights were set on something bigger and when she was offered an interview, and then a job at Jenners, she jumped at the chance.

Based in its counting house, the young Muriel from Craigmillar would immerse herself in the many typing and billing tasks thrown her way.

It wasn't long before her talents were spotted by management, however, and she was asked to join the valuation team which dealt with the many houses and flats Jenners owned and let across Edinburgh.

Located on the same floor as the store's most senior managers, Muriel would go out with her colleagues and assess the condition of the properties, returning to type up and report back on the findings.

"Jenners was a family business and run as such," says Muriel. "You were given opportunities and encouraged to take them. It was a wonderful place to work. As for the customers, it was always a shop where they were really looked after by staff. I remember the floor walkers who used to be on every level, checking everything was all right."

With younger siblings to help provide for, Muriel eventually left Jenners to work for McVitie's, where she was offered a larger salary.