Bob Johnson (butcher)
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Robert Alan Johnson (24 September 1940 – 10 August 2001) was a British
butcher A butcher is a person who may Animal slaughter, slaughter animals, dress their flesh, sell their meat, or participate within any combination of these three tasks. They may prepare standard cuts of meat and poultry for sale in retail or wholesale ...
and businessman in the
meat industry The meat industry are the people and companies engaged in modern industrialized livestock agriculture for the production, packing, preservation and marketing of meat (in contrast to dairy products, wool, etc.). In economics, the meat industry is ...
. He was chairman of
Farepak European Home Retail plc (EHR) was a listed UK company, operating in home retail. Though registered in Swindon, Wiltshire, its head office was based in Warmley, Bristol. On 13 October 2006, it was announced EHR and its subsidiary Farepak had gone ...
.


Early and private life

Johnson was born in St Giles's Hospital in
Camberwell Camberwell ( ) is an List of areas of London, area of South London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark, southeast of Charing Cross. Camberwell was first a village associated with the church of St Giles' Church, Camberwell, St Giles ...
,
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
,
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
, the youngest child and only son of Bert Johnson and his wife Lily (née Good). His father worked as a clerk at a meat depot. He and his mother were evacuated to
Torbay Torbay is a unitary authority with a borough status in the ceremonial county of Devon, England. It is governed by Torbay Council, based in the town of Torquay, and also includes the towns of Paignton and Brixham. The borough consists of ...
during
the Blitz The Blitz (English: "flash") was a Nazi Germany, German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom, for eight months, from 7 September 1940 to 11 May 1941, during the Second World War. Towards the end of the Battle of Britain in 1940, a co ...
. His father stayed in London to work, and his parents later separated and were divorced in 1948. Johnson was educated in
Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...
. He converted to
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
ism aged 12, and studied at a Catholic
boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. They have existed for many centuries, and now extend acr ...
, St Mary's, at
Clyst St Mary Clyst St Mary is a small village and civil parish east of Exeter on the main roads to Exmouth and Sidmouth in East Devon. The name comes from the Celtic languages, Celtic word clyst meaning 'clear stream'. The village is a major part of the e ...
in Devon. He married Bruna Gilodi, a native of
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
, in 1971. They have two children, Nicholas and Chiara.


Business career

Johnson left school aged 18 with no formal qualifications, and went to work in Rooksby's butcher's shops in
Peckham Peckham ( ) is a district in south-east London, within the London Borough of Southwark. It is south-east of Charing Cross. At the 2001 Census the Peckham ward had a population of 14,720. History "Peckham" is a Saxon place name meaning the vi ...
, owned by John Manson Ltd. Together with William Knapman and another partner, his father was co-owner of Manson, a chain of around 110 butcher's shops based in and around south London. Despite being the son of one of the company's owners, he was shown no favouritism, and left after 3 years to study theology and philosophy with the
White Fathers The White Fathers (), officially known as the Missionaries of Africa (), and abbreviated MAfr, are a Roman Catholic society of apostolic life of pontifical right (for men). They were founded in 1868 by Charles-Martial Allemand-Lavigerie, who w ...
in Ireland with thoughts of becoming a
missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thoma ...
. After 2 years in Ireland, Johnson became a
novice A novice is a person who has entered a religious order and is under probation, before taking vows. A ''novice'' can also refer to a person (or animal e.g. racehorse) who is entering a profession with no prior experience. Religion Buddhism ...
in England and then spent a year in France, but he left the Order aged 26 before taking vows of
poverty, chastity, and obedience In Christianity, the three evangelical counsels, or counsels of perfection, are chastity, poverty (or perfect charity), and obedience. As stated by Jesus in the canonical gospels, they are counsels for those who desire to become "perfect" (, ). ...
. Johnson returned to John Manson Ltd in 1966, becoming a trainee meat buyer at
Smithfield Market Smithfield, properly known as West Smithfield, is a district located in Central London, part of Farringdon Without, the most westerly Wards of the City of London, ward of the City of London, England. Smithfield is home to a number of City in ...
, and then becoming the manager of the company's butcher's shop on the
King's Road King's Road or Kings Road (or sometimes the King's Road, especially when it was the king's private road until 1830, or as a colloquialism by middle/upper class London residents) is a major street stretching through Chelsea and Fulham, both ...
. Shortly afterwards, Johnson took charge of the company's new acquisition, the
Farepak European Home Retail plc (EHR) was a listed UK company, operating in home retail. Though registered in Swindon, Wiltshire, its head office was based in Warmley, Bristol. On 13 October 2006, it was announced EHR and its subsidiary Farepak had gone ...
hamper A hamper refers to one of several related basket-like items. In primarily British usage, it refers to a wicker basket, usually large, that is used for the transport of items, often food. In North America, the term generally refers to a household ...
business, which operated through local agents offering hampers through a Christmas saving club. The company was able to secure an increasing market share due to the decline of the high street butchers that offers a similar service. The butchers were facing stiff competition for their regular trade from the expanding
supermarket A supermarket is a self-service Retail#Types of outlets, shop offering a wide variety of food, Drink, beverages and Household goods, household products, organized into sections. Strictly speaking, a supermarket is larger and has a wider selecti ...
s, but the supermarkets did not enter the hamper business. The Farepak operations moved to
Swindon Swindon () is a town in Wiltshire, England. At the time of the 2021 Census the population of the built-up area was 183,638, making it the largest settlement in the county. Located at the northeastern edge of the South West England region, Swi ...
in 1979. Johnson became managing director of Mansons in 1980. He wanted the company to move away from high street butchery and to concentrate on selling
mail order Mail order is the buying of goods or services by mail delivery. The buyer places an order for the desired products with the merchant through some remote methods such as: * Sending an order form in the mail * Placing an order by telephone call ...
hampers, but his father and the other directors did not agree. The dispute was resolved in 1984 by Farepak demerging from Mansons. Johnson left with the demerged Farepak and grew the business rapidly, but the rump of Manson's butcher's business stagnated under Knapman's control. Farepak expanded its
mail-order Mail order is the buying of goods or services by mail delivery. The buyer places an order for the desired products with the merchant through some remote methods such as: * Sending an order form in the mail * Placing an order by telephone call ...
hamper business to include frozen food, drinks, Christmas gifts, and shopping vouchers. The company became a plc in 1989, and was listed on the
London Stock Exchange The London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange based in London, England. the total market value of all companies trading on the LSE stood at US$3.42 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Paul's Cath ...
in 1993, with an annual turnover exceeding £30 million. Farepak acquired Kleeneze in 1995, adding door-to-door sales of household cleaning products to the mail-order hamper business. Farepak was renamed as Kleeneze plc in 1999. By 2001, the group had an annual turnover of over £200 million with a market capitalisation exceeding £85 million. Johnson and his family continued to hold over half of its shares.


Philanthropy

In later life, Johnson spent time on philanthric activities. He funded expeditions to
Malawi Malawi, officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast, and Mozambique to the east, south, and southwest. Malawi spans over and ...
,
Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...
and
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...
by
orthopaedic surgeon Orthopedic surgery or orthopedics ( alternative spelling orthopaedics) is the branch of surgery concerned with conditions involving the musculoskeletal system. Orthopedic surgeons use both surgical and nonsurgical means to treat musculoskeletal ...
Hein Raat, and became a funder and trustee of the Impact Foundation which operates hospitals in Africa, India and
Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...
. He also funded a Chair of European Thought at
Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...
in 1997, and donated money to the Refugee Studies Centre in Oxford which studies
forced migration Forced displacement (also forced migration or forced relocation) is an involuntary or coerced movement of a person or people away from their home or home region. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, UNHCR defines 'forced displaceme ...
. Johnson was also a member of the
Worshipful Company of Butchers The Worshipful Company of Butchers is one of the Livery Company, Livery Companies of the City of London, England. Records indicate that an organisation of butchers existed as early as 975; the Butchers' Guild, the direct predecessor of the prese ...
, and a
freeman Freeman, free men, Freeman's or Freemans may refer to: Places United States * Freeman, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Freeman, Illinois, an unincorporated community * Freeman, Indiana, an unincorporated community * Freeman, South Dako ...
of the
City of London The City of London, also known as ''the City'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and Districts of England, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in England. It is the Old town, his ...
. Johnson became a director of (and investor in)
Prospect magazine ''Prospect'' is a monthly British general-interest magazine, specialising in politics, economics and current affairs. Topics covered include British and other European, as well as US politics, social issues, art, literature, cinema, science, th ...
, sponsored
Garsington Opera Garsington Opera is an annual summer opera festival founded in 1989 by Leonard Ingrams. The Philharmonia Orchestra and The English Concert are its two resident orchestras. For 21 years it was held in the gardens of Ingrams's home at Garsingto ...
, collected works of art, and advised the
Ashmolean Museum The Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology () on Beaumont Street in Oxford, England, is Britain's first public museum. Its first building was erected in 1678–1683 to house the cabinet of curiosities that Elias Ashmole gave to the University ...
and
Bodleian Library The Bodleian Library () is the main research library of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1602 by Sir Thomas Bodley, it is one of the oldest libraries in Europe. With over 13 million printed items, it is the second-largest library in ...
. He died of a
heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...
on 10 August 2001, while on holiday at
Olbia Olbia (, ; ; ) is a city and communes of Italy, commune of 61,000 inhabitants in the Italy, Italian insular province of Sassari in northeastern Sardinia, Italy, in the historical region of Gallura. Called in the Roman age, Civita in the Middle ...
in
Sardinia Sardinia ( ; ; ) is the Mediterranean islands#By area, second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, and one of the Regions of Italy, twenty regions of Italy. It is located west of the Italian Peninsula, north of Tunisia an ...
. He was survived by his wife and two children.


References

*David Goodhart, "Johnson, Robert Alan ob(1940–2001)",
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from History of the British Isles, British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') ...
, online edn,
Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...
, Jan 2005; online edn, Jan 200
accessed 30 Jan 2009
*Obituaries: