Hamleys

Hamleys of London Limited
FormerlyHamleys Limited (1988–1994)[1]
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryRetail
Founded1760; 264 years ago (1760)
FounderWilliam Hamley
HeadquartersLondon, England, UK
Number of locations
11 in UK; 90 international franchises
Area served
Worldwide
Products
RevenueGBP 5.5million[2] (2017)
OwnerReliance Retail
Websitehamleys.com

Hamleys of London Limited, trading as Hamleys, is a British multinational toy retailer, owned by Reliance Retail. Listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the world's oldest toy store, it was founded by William Hamley as "Noah's Ark" in High Holborn, London, in 1760. It moved to its current site on Regent Street in London's West End in 1881. This flagship store is set over seven floors, with more than 50,000 lines of toys on sale. It receives around five million visitors each year.

The chain has 11 outlets in the United Kingdom and also has more than 90 franchises worldwide.[3] Hamleys became famous in the early Victorian era, with royalty among its customers. The store was granted its first royal warrant from Queen Mary in 1938. It held a royal warrant from Elizabeth II from 1955 to 2022 (her death).

  1. ^ "HAMLEYS OF LONDON LIMITED overview - Find and update company information - GOV.UK". Companies House. 17 August 1988. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  2. ^ "The Hamleys Group net worth".
  3. ^ "Hamleys Stores - Find Hamleys Store Worldwide". Hamleys. Retrieved 18 June 2020.