From Shop Floors to Shaping Legacies: A Retail Champion’s Reflections on Resilience, Roots and Remarkable Women

Clare’s talk focuses on the person, not the politics—highlighting how from humble beginnings in a grocer’s shop, Margaret Thatcher built a truly memorable legacy. Drawing parallels with her own journey in retail, Clare explores how resilience, hard work, and ambition shaped both their paths, and how those values remain deeply relevant and inspiring today. With a thoughtful blend of humour, nostalgia and insight into the evolution of retail, this talk is a fitting tribute that invites the audience to reflect on the lasting impact of ordinary people who dare to think big.

About your speaker – Clare Bailey- The Retail Champion shares her personal reflections on growing up in Lincolnshire and the surprising connections she shares with Margaret Thatcher, Grantham’s most famous daughter. As the daughter of a retailer and a former pupil at Queen Elizabeth Horncastle Grammar School, Clare recalls sporting matches against Grantham Girls’ and the day she left her school bag on Thatcher’s old coat peg. These light-hearted anecdotes offer a local and personal lens through which to explore the woman behind the public figure.

Tickets £8 or £5 for Friends Of the Museum Supporters, and include tea and coffee on arrival.

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