The Baker Shops

The Baker Shop in Pera (Beyoğlu). Neighbors are also famous at the time from other businesses, on the left is the shoe store Victor Burgeni and the bon-marche Carlmann on the right.Mavi Boncuk |

The Baker Shops

These shops were established by the English Baker family who arrived in Constantinople after the Crimean war (1853), and the English immigrant families of Edwards and Binns were also involved with these shops. These latter 2 families opened businesses in different sectors and neigbourhoods of Istanbul, however with time these businesses were either transferred to the Bakers or they merged through partnership with them. The founder of the Baker shops, George Baker was at that time already operating a substantial business in London.

Soon after George Baker arrived in Istanbul, he formed a partnership with the Hayden family and together they opened two shops, one on the Grand Rue de Pera, at where Anadolu Han now stands, the other in nearby Galata, opposite Serdar Ekrem Street, on the corner looking out to the Galata tower. This partnership established in the 1860s remained firm till the end of the 1870s.

With the end of this decade, Hayden and Baker went their own way, and Hayden retained these shops and Baker opened new retail outlets. One of these shops was again by the Galata tower, at Şahdeğirmeni Street, and the other was next to the former Kanzuch pharmacy [Austrian run, in Pera?].

Soon after this first shop on the Grand Rue de Pera, George Baker opened his second shop where Sümerbank [central Pera, near the British Consulate] now stands. In these shops the Bakers sold a wide range of goods in including textiles, bedding, furniture and accessories. In addition to this they had by this time obtained the local representation of many foreign firms.

A close friend of the Bakers, Cuthbert Evelyn Binns, became the manager of the Baker shops after WWI. The other English Levantine family of Edwards family firm, Edwards and Sons, merged with the G. & A. Baker company. At this time C.E. Binns was still the general manager, and W.G.M. Edwards continued his career as a member of the board of directors. Records show that between 1924-1925 W.G.M. Edwards continued his association with the local British Chamber of Commerce and in 1930 was elected as its president.

Following the parting of ways with Hayden, George Baker continued to use his own name in all firms and outlets he subsequently established. Both his sons’ first names began with the letter ‘A’, so the later name of the firm had this letter added. Despite the Baker shops being in Pera [Beyoğlu], the head office was always in old Istanbul [across the Golden Horn]. In the 1880s Baker ran his import, export and commission enterprise at Matteo han in Tarakçılar Street, later moving this centre to Prevuyans han in Tahtakale, and remained there till the dissolution of the firm. In Fener Street in Balat, they had a large warehouse, while their tobacco warehouse and salesroom was in Beşiktaş. In addition the Baker had a partnership with Seager, based at Hovagimyan Han in Galata; Baker & Seager shipping.

In the early years of the 1950s Bakers began to wind up their businesses, first they closed down their large household goods shops in İstiklal Street, Pera. Their furniture shop, next to the French Hachette bookshop in Pera, they sold to one of the richest Greek families of Istanbul, the Pallavidis. This family had already bought their other 2 shops in Galata, the one just before Şahdeğirmeni Street, and the other on the corner of this street. With these shops the Pallavidis ran a clothes and shoes shop chain. The head of the family, Dimitri Pallavidis, came to an agreement with another Greek shop owner, Leonidas Yotto, and became a partner in his patisserie, renaming the outlet Rekor to Kervan.

Despite renaming the Baker shop Pallavidis, the local population of Beyoğlu carried on referring to this shop as Baker. However with the anti-minority mob riots of 6-7 Sept. 1955 both Pallavidis shops were looted, and were later refurbished, but with the later death of Dimitri Pallavidis, all shops closed down. The son of Dimitri Pallavidis, Niko established a large import-export firm by the name of ‘Şark Export’, a firm that still trades today.

Behzat Üskiden 

The bank, the money lenders, the money changers, the usurers and the jewellers of Pera and Beyoğlu 
Published by Istanbul: Kentbank / Creative Yayincilik, 2000., Istanbul:, 2000ISBN 10: 9757104388ISBN 13: 9789757104384

Pera'dan Beyoglu'na, 1840-1955.
Published by Akbank, Istanbul, 1999
ISBN 10: 9757880167ISBN 13: 9789757880165

The neighbouring shop to the Baker’s was Carlmann, run by a long-time resident Romanian Jew whose business was sequestrated by the state, like a lot of other minorities with the imposition of a massive ‘wealth tax’ during WWII (1942). The building stayed vacant for 25 years and later this whole section got pulled down and is now occupied by the Odakule business high-rise, built by the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce in 1976, totally out of character with the architecture of the neighbourhood.

from an earlier Mavi Boncuk Posting

Baker Ticarethanesi / G. And A. Baker 

Mavi Boncuk | 

Prominent Baker family of Istanbul who established a major department store on the fashionable high street of Pera[1] in 1854, with later branches in the nearby quarters of Yüksekkaldırım and Sirkeci. The founder was a George Baker who was bestowed by the Sultan Abdülhamit II, the right to sell goods to the palace. On the death of George Baker on 21-Feb-1905, aged 93, (buried at Haydarpaşa cemetery) His head stone records that he was the head gardener at the British Embassy and was born at Totteridge, Herts. 1822, came to Constantinople 1847. 

In the book ‘The bank, the money lenders, the money changers, the usurers and the jewellers of Pera and Beyoğlu - Behzat Üskiden - Creative publishing 2000’ the illustration clearly shows the shopfront sign as G&A Baker ltd. (the photo is part of a newspaper advertisement, published 15-Jan-1931), presumably the first names of the sons. 

[1] Baker and Hayden stores. These two partners took the store on the site just after Su Terazi Sokağı where Anadolu Pasajı was to be built. They also had a store at the entrance to Kule Kapısı. It was in fact Hayden who opened both stores single-handedly. In 1854 after the Crimean War, the Baker family emigrating from England went into partnership with this firm. In the store on the Grand-Rue de Pera there was a counter for silver and antiques. When Baker eventually left the partnership with Hayden, he opened Maison Baker/ Baker Stores, which was also located on the Grand-Rue de Pera. One of them was concerned only with household goods and furniture. The other sold women’s clothing and accessories. In this store there was a jewelry counter.

Baker Ticarethanesi En kadim ve en meşhur İngiliz ticarethanesi Beyoğlu'nda numara 241, 370 Tekye Caddesi'nde numara 500 İstanbul'da Yeni Postane Caddesi'nde "Sirkeci", Numara 76 Saray-ı Hümayunun müteahhidi (tedarikçisi) Veliaht-ı Saltanat-ı Seniyye Devletlü Necabetlü Yusuf İzzettin Efendi Hazretleri ve Zabıtan-ı Osmaniye terzisi erkeklere, kadınlara, çocuklara mahsus fanilalar, çoraplar, İngiliz mamulâtı Kauçuktan mamul eşya sonbahar ve kış mevsimlerine mahsus kunduralar Sayfa ortasındaki resmin sağı ve solu: Fiyatları mutedil Sayfa ortasındaki resmin altı: Erkek, kadın ve çocuklara mahsus her cinsten yeni getirtilmiş (içine su geçmez) empremeabil (desenli), paltolar Memalik-i Osmaniye'de yalnız Baker Ticarethanesi'nin vekil olduğu Emerson, Panriçyan, Briston, Prenses ve sair Amerika ve İngiliz fabrikaları mamulâtından potin iskarpinler Sayfanın en altı: İngiliz ve Amerika mamulâtından gayet rahat ve hafif yeni lastik galoşlar. Baker Ticarethanesinde yalnız mamulat-ı nefise satılır. Bundan müşteriler emin olabilirler. Şehbal, 28 Kasım 1911

Spor Meraklılarına Spor için lazım olan şeylerinizi almadan bir defa mağazamızın spor şubesini ziyaret ediniz. Spor şubemizde sağlam raketler, tenis topları, futbol topları vesaire her nevi malzeme mevcuttur. Her halde mağazamızı bir defa ziyaret sizi müstefit eder. Daima yeni yeni spor eşyası geliyor Beyoğlu'nda Doğru Yol'da 370 Numarada. Baker Mağazaları Servet-i Fünun, 2 Eylül 1926

Beyoğlu'nda Doğru Yol'da Fransız Sefarethanesi karşısında Meşhur Baker'in Yeni Mağazası Oda döşetmek istiyorsanız Baker Mağazaları’na yeni varit olan muhtelif nevi ve şekilde keten ve yünlü döşemeleri bir defa görmelisiniz. 

Her nevi mobilya ve tefrişat için Baker Mağazaları taahhüdat kabul ederek gelin odalarını, haneleri mükemmelen ve mutedil surette tefriş eylemektedir. Yolculuk etmek niyetiniz var ise Baker Mağazası’na yeni varit olan çanta, sandık, bavul vesaire malzeme-i Seferiye yi bir defa müşahide etmelisiniz. Baker Mağazası’na bu defa yazıhane ve yemek odası ve devair odalarına mahsus a'la ve nefis marokenler varit olmuştur (ulaşmıştır). Erkek çocuklara mahsus latif ve bahriye biçiminde sağlam esvap ile gayet dayanaklı zarif çocuk kunduraları lazım ise Baker Mağazası’na müracaat etmelisiniz. Terzilere elbise ısmarlamadan Baker Mağazaları’nın yeni ve zarif İngiliz kumaşlarını bir defa muayene eyleyiniz. Potinlerinize lastik almadan bir defa Baker Mağazası’nın halis İngiliz mamulâtı lastik kunduralarını görmelisiniz. Fanila- çorap-mendil en birinci İngiliz mamulâtından. Yataklara mahsus en zarif ve kalın battaniye ve yorganlar ve çarşaflar. Kadın ve erkeklere mahsus gayet metin ve zarif İngiliz mamulâtından ayakkabılar. Servet-i Fünun, 4 Ocak 1900