Hayward & Warwick's new owner celebrates 50 years with company

Royden McKillop spent his 50th work anniversary at Hayward and Warwick reflecting on his decades spent in one place.

"When I first came here, I was sweeping floors and unpacking dishes and china," says McKillop, who started in the warehouse in 1966 when he was just 18.

McKillop and his wife, Suzan, purchased the retail shop in 2013, after Mark Hayward and his brother David, sold off the building that had been in their family since 1877.

"After being here so many years, I couldn't let it go," says McKillop.

"And my wife agreed with me. And we both decided we'd try it."

Wednesdaymorning, old friends and customers stopped by for cake.

Stephen Flynn, who worked for the business from 1995 to 2006, dropped by to shake hands with McKillop and offer his congratulations.

"The average person goes through five jobs in their life time," said Flynn.

"To know Royden was here and stayed on and bought out the operation, I was surprised and also I was not.

"It's in his blood. He's Hayward and Warwick and Hayward and Warwick is him."

Both men reminisced about the changes that came in recent decades.

"We used to have a whole wall of Royal Doulton figurines," said McKillop, standing in front of the glass case and waving his hand toward a dozen porcelain female characters no longer as popular as collectibles as they used to be.

"But the younger generation today, they're not interested."

"This store used to be covered, the whole store used to be bone china, wall to wall. And porcelain teapots like the brown betty teapot from England."

McKillop says families now demand casual dishes that don't have to be washed by hand.

He says lines endorsed by celebrity chefs, such as Gordon Ramsay, have become more popular.

Flynn recalled catalogues being made in the warehouse to be used by sales staff and customers from one end of the country to the other.

"Out back there were three or four floors of warehouse space, with just gazillions of different items in there, china, giftware, souvenir stuff," says Flynn.

"Eventually, they were taking plates and saucers and putting logos on. They had a kiln on the second floor where things were fired."

McKillop says it's not easy being an independent business.

He says he has felt some pressure to move to the east side of the city, where he says, more and more retail business seems to be making ithome.

But after 50 years in the same place, he says he's reluctant to go.