The origin of Boots goes back to middle of the 19th Century, when John Boot opened a herbalist shop in Nottingham in 1849. The venture moved to a more formal footing in 1871, when John Boot's widow, Mary, and his son, Jesse, established M&J Boot, Herbalists, and in 1883 Boot & Company Ltd was formed. Between 1890 and the onset of World War I, the business grew rapidly, from just 10 stores to over 550 by 1914. The company was sold to the American United Drug Company in 1920, but in 1933 was sold back to a British consortium led by John Boot's grandson.
Boots has been a well established name in the British retail landscape ever since, and as well as having an extensive store network in the UK, also operates a successful website and produces mail order catalogues. In more recent times, the group was de-listed from the stock exchange in 2007 after it was sold to AB Acquisitions Limited.
"Boots is a member of Alliance Boots, an international pharmacy-led health and beauty group. Our purpose is to help our customers look and feel better than they ever thought possible.
Our customers are at the heart of our business. We're committed to providing exceptional customer and patient care, be the first choice for pharmacy and healthcare, offer innovative products 'only at Boots', with great value our customers love."
As well as medicines, healthcare and beauty products, for which it is probably best known, Boots also offers a wide range of other products, including nursery goods, toys, electrical items and fragrances, as well as opticians and photo services.
As well as an Offers section on their website, Boots regularly have promotions, including '3 for 2' offers, as well as running its own loyalty programme, Advantage.
Orders can be collected from a store without incurring delivery charges. Standard home delivery only costs £2.90, but orders over £45 are also delivered free. There are also further options for named day / next day / Saturday deliveries. Unwanted items can be returned free of charge within 28 days, provided they are unused and in their original condition.
"I use Boots all the time for buying gifts for birthdays and for Christmas. As well as always having loads of '3 for 2' offers, I am also able to accumulate advantage card points with every order."
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