Harrods

Harrods is a Department store that specializes in luxury goods on Brompton Road in Knightsbridge London district. Outside the Department store Harrods group includes also a bank (Harrods Bank), a real estate company (Harrods Estate) and an air company (Air Harrods).

Started In 1835 Charles Henry Harrod, a teaand grocery wholesaler, a shop opposite his house in Stepney in London's East End. He was worried because of acholeraepidemic in London and he moved in 1849 to the then quiet Brompton Road to a grocery store to take over. Together with the district grew, so did his trade and he took over the adjoining buildings along on in his case.

In 1861 the company was taken over by Charles Digby Harrod, the son of Charles SR. The store was thoroughly renovated. Harrod got the opportunity to rebuild on a larger scale everything after a fire on 6 december 1883. When Harrod Jr. retired in 1889 was Harrods a publicly traded company, but the company would come back into private hands in 1959, when it was bought by House of Fraser.

The current owner is Qatar holding, the investment fund of the Royal family of Qatar. The holding bought the Department store in 2010 by Mohamed Al-Fayed for about 1.8 billion euros.

Harrods was three times the target of the IRA. On 17 december 1983 a bomb explosion killed six people and injured 90. Three days later Harrods despite the havoc again open.