The Sainsbury family (also Lord Sainsbury and family and incorrectly the Sainsbury's family) founded

Sainsbury's J Sainsbury plc, trading as Sainsbury's, is a British supermarket and the second-largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury with a shop in Drury Lane, London, the company was the largest UK r ...

, the UK's second-largest supermarket chain. Today, the family has many interests, including business, politics, philanthropy, arts, and sciences.

Principal members of the Sainsbury family

Principal members of the founding family of the UK supermarket chain

are: *

John James Sainsbury John James Sainsbury (12 June 1844 – 3 January 1928) was an English grocer and founder of what is now called the Sainsbury's supermarket chain. Early and private life John James Sainsbury was born on 12 June 1844 at 5 Oakley Street, Lambet ...

(c.1844 – c.1928), co-founder of the

supermarket chain *

Mary Ann Sainsbury Mary Ann Sainsbury (''née'' Staples; 30 June 1849 – 9 June 1927) was the wife of John James Sainsbury, the founder of the Sainsbury's supermarket chain. The supermarket chain named their official brand font 'Mary-Ann', used in-store, on ...

née Staples (c.1849 – c.1927), wife of John James Sainsbury and co-founder of the

supermarket chain ** John Benjamin Sainsbury (1871–1956), eldest son of John James and Mary Ann Sainsbury *** Alan John Sainsbury, Baron Sainsbury (1902–1998), eldest son of John Benjamin Sainsbury, a Labour

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...

1962 as Lord Sainsbury, later joined the SDP. **** John Davan Sainsbury, Baron Sainsbury of Preston Candover KG (1927–2022), eldest son of Alan Sainsbury, a Conservative

(Baron Sainsbury of Preston Candover), married to former ballerina

Anya Linden Anya Linden, Baroness Sainsbury of Preston Candover (''née'' Ann Eltenton; 3 January 1933) is an English retired ballerina and patron of the arts. Early life and family Linden was born in Manchester, the daughter of physicist George C. Elt ...

*****The Hon. Sarah Sainsbury, daughter of John Davan Sainsbury, married to Hon. Robert Butler-Sloss, son of

Elizabeth Butler-Sloss, Baroness Butler-Sloss Ann Elizabeth Oldfield Butler-Sloss, Baroness Butler-Sloss, GBE, PC (''née'' Havers; born 10 August 1933) is a retired English judge. She was the first female Lord Justice of Appeal and was the highest-ranking female judge in the United King ...

*****The Hon. John Julian Sainsbury, son of John Davan Sainsbury *****The Hon. Mark Sainsbury, son of John Davan Sainsbury **** The Hon. Simon Sainsbury (1930–2006), second son of Alan Sainsbury, quiet philanthropist who gave away £100 million. Entered into a civil partnership with Stewart Grimshaw shortly before his death. ****

The Right Honourable ''The Right Honourable'' (abbreviation: The Rt Hon. or variations) is an honorific Style (form of address), style traditionally applied to certain persons and collective bodies in the United Kingdom, the former British Empire, and the Commonwealt ...

Sir Timothy Sainsbury (1932–), third son of Alan Sainsbury, former Tory MP and Minister, married to Susan Mary Sainsbury (formerly Mitchell) (b. 1939) *****Camilla Sainsbury, daughter of Timothy Sainsbury, married to Conservative, later Labour, MP The Rt Hon.

Shaun Woodward Shaun Anthony Woodward (born 26 October 1958) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from 2007 to 2010. A former television researcher and producer, Woodward began his political career in the Conservativ ...

*****James Sainsbury, son of Timothy Sainsbury *****Alexander Sainsbury, son of Timothy Sainsbury *****Jessica de Frankopan, daughter of Timothy Sainsbury and married to Peter de Frankopan Subic Zrinski (né Doimi de Lupis) ****Paulette Sainsbury, only daughter of Alan Sainsbury (1946–); known by married name Paulette Anderson ***** Cairistiona Anderson, daughter of Paulette Anderson *****Lindsey Anderson, daughter of Paulette Anderson ***

Sir Robert Sainsbury Sir Robert James Sainsbury (24 October 1906 – 2 April 2000) was a businessman, philanthropist, and patron of the arts. He was the son of John Benjamin Sainsbury and the grandson of the founder of Sainsbury's supermarkets John James Sainsbury ...

(1907–2000), son of John Benjamin Sainsbury, who, with his wife, Lisa (née Van den Bergh; 1912–2014), began the collection of modern and tribal art housed at the

Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts The Sainsbury Centre is an art museum located on the campus of the University of East Anglia, Norwich, England. As part of its relaunch in 2023 under new executive director, Jago Cooper, the Sainsbury Centre became the first museum in the wor ...

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of the county of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. It lies by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. The population of the Norwich ...

had issue: **** (Elizabeth Clark 19 July 1938 – 14 August 1977), daughter of Robert Sainsbury ***** James Jackson Clark (b. 23 February 1964), son of Elizabeth Clark ***** (b. 25 February 1966), son of Elizabeth Clark **** David Sainsbury, Baron Sainsbury of Turville (1940–), son of Robert Sainsbury, Labour

(Baron Sainsbury of Turville), who with his wife, Susan Carroll, The Lady Sainsbury of Turville, DBE, has issue: *****The Hon. Clare Sainsbury, daughter of David Sainsbury, wrote ''Martian In The Playground'', to help people understand Asperger syndrome *****The Hon. Anya Lucy Sainsbury, daughter of David Sainsbury *****The Hon. Francesca Sainsbury, daughter of David Sainsbury ****Celia Sainsbury, daughter of Robert Sainsbury, married name Celia Blakey, had issue: *****Simon Blakey, son of Celia Blakey *****Michael Robert Blakey, son of Celia Blakey ****Annabel Sainsbury, daughter of Robert Sainsbury, married name Annabel Kanabus, former director of the HIV/AIDS charity

AVERT Avert is an international charity with a focus on HIV and associated issues. Between 1986 and 2024 Avert supported inclusive, non-judgemental information services, sponsored medical research that others refused to fund, and supported local o ...

and later director of the charity GHE, has issue: *****

Jason Kanabus Jason Kanabus (15 June 1976 – 6 July 2006) was a member of the Sainsbury supermarket family, and on his death he left £2.5 million to charity. Working life and hobby Jason Kanabus was brought up on his parents' farm near Horsham, Sussex, his ...

(1976–2006), son of Annabel Sainsbury, left fortune to

Prince's Trust The King's Trust (formerly the Prince's Trust) is a United Kingdom-based charity founded in 1976 by King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) to help vulnerable young people get their lives on track. It supports 11-to-30-year-olds who are unempl ...

to help young people become established in farming *****Adrian Kanabus, son of Annabel Sainsbury **Arthur Sainsbury (1880–1962) ***James Sainsbury (1909–1984)

Family involvement in Sainsbury's

No family member works for the company, although

John Davan Sainsbury John Davan Sainsbury, Baron Sainsbury of Preston Candover (2 November 1927 – 14 January 2022) was a British businessman and politician. He served as the President of Sainsbury's, and sat in the House of Lords as a life peer and member of the ...

was the Life President of the firm at his death in 2022. The last family member to work for the company was

Tim Sainsbury Sir Timothy Alan Davan Sainsbury (born 11 June 1932) is a Conservative politician and businessman in the United Kingdom. Early life Sainsbury is the youngest son of Alan Sainsbury, Baron Sainsbury, and his wife Doreen. His elder brothers are ...

who retired as a non-executive director in 1999. The last family chairman was

David Sainsbury David John Sainsbury, Baron Sainsbury of Turville (born 24 October 1940) is a British politician, businessman and philanthropist. From 1992 to 1997, he served as chairman of Sainsbury's, the supermarket chain established by his great-grandfath ...

who retired as chairman of the company in 1998. This brought to an end 129 years of management of the group by the Sainsbury family. As a government minister since 1998, his shares were held in a blind trust until 2007.

Family shareholding in Sainsbury's

The equity interest in Sainsbury's held by the family as of May 2011 is 15%. The family sold down their stake from 35% in 2005. The largest family shareholders are

Lord Sainsbury of Turville David John Sainsbury, Baron Sainsbury of Turville (born 24 October 1940) is a British politician, businessman and philanthropist. From 1992 to 1997, he served as chairman of Sainsbury's, the supermarket chain established by his great-grandfath ...

with 4.99% and

Lord Sainsbury of Preston Candover John Davan Sainsbury, Baron Sainsbury of Preston Candover (2 November 1927 – 14 January 2022) was a British businessman and politician. He served as the President of Sainsbury's, and sat in the House of Lords as a life peer and member of the ...

, who controls just under 3% of the company, and benefits from 1.6% of the equity included in the above. The Sunday Times reported in September 2006 that "The Sainsbury family continues to

ell An ell (from Proto-Germanic *''alinō'', cognate with Latin ''ulna'') is a northwestern European unit of measurement, originally understood as a cubit (the combined length of the forearm and extended hand). The word literally means "arm", an ...

shares in the £6.2 billion retailer... and for the first time their combined holding has fallen below 20%.” The largest shareholder is the

Qatar Investment Authority The Qatar Investment Authority (QIA; ) is Qatar's sovereign wealth fund. The QIA was founded by the State of Qatar in 2005 to strengthen the country's economy by diversifying into new asset classes. In November 2024, the QIA had an estimated $526 ...

, the investment vehicle of the Qatari royal family of the Gulf Kingdom, who as of May 2011 holds 25.999% of the company. Lord Sainsbury of Preston Candover's decision to split his 3.89% holding in Sainsbury's between other members of his family in December 2006 suggests that the family may not have sold as many shares as previously thought. The other theory could be that the most senior members of the family, with previous stakes of over 3% (the reportable stock exchange shareholding threshold), could have simply transferred some of their shares to their children (who previously held few shares), rather than having sold shares onto the open market. However, some shares which have been sold were definitely sold to the open market (according to Miss Judith Portrait, the trustee for many Sainsbury family settlements). This fall from around 35% increases the possibility of any takeover attempt succeeding. However, the Sainsbury family have managed to use their remaining stake to block takeover bids in the past, as demonstrated by the two failed takeover bids in 2007. A hostile bid for the company may encounter difficulties, without the full support of the Sainsbury family. The halving of the generous dividend yield in recent years may have been a significant factor regarding the family's decision to reduce their shareholdings.

Buildings set up by the Sainsbury family

The Sainsbury family has also set up a number of buildings, to house their various interests. These are: *

Arts Centre *

Sainsbury Laboratory The Sainsbury Laboratory (TSL) is a research institute located at the Norwich Research Park in Norwich, Norfolk, England, that carries out fundamental biological research and technology development on aspects of plant disease, plant disease r ...

Science Laboratory *

Sainsbury Laboratory Cambridge University The Sainsbury Laboratory Cambridge University (or SLCU) is an independently funded British research institute based at the Cambridge University Botanic Garden. Its aim is to elucidate the regulatory systems underlying plant growth and plant devel ...

* Sainsbury Wing Wing of the

National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of more than 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current di ...

(London) *Sainsbury Library in the

Saïd Business School Saïd Business School (Oxford Saïd or SBS) is the business school of the University of Oxford. The school is a provider of management education. Business and management classes started at Oxford in 1965 when the Centre of Management Studies, ...

at the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, 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 List of oldest un ...

*Sainsbury African Galleries at the

British Museum The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...

*Sainsbury Exhibitions Gallery at the

*The Timothy Sainsbury Gallery at the

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (abbreviated V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.8 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and named after Queen ...

*The Robert and Lisa Sainsbury Wing of

Hammersmith Hospital Hammersmith Hospital, formerly the Military Orthopaedic Hospital, and later the Special Surgical Hospital, is a major teaching hospital in White City, London, White City, West London. It is part of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust in the ...

*Sainsbury-Wellcome Centre *Linbury Galleries at

Tate Britain Tate Britain, known from 1897 to 1932 as the National Gallery of British Art and from 1932 to 2000 as the Tate Gallery, is an art museum on Millbank in the City of Westminster in London, England. It is part of the Tate network of galleries in En ...

*Linbury Gallery at the

Museum of London London Museum (known from 1976 to 2024 as the Museum of London) is a museum in London, covering the history of the city from prehistoric to modern times, with a particular focus on social history. The Museum of London was formed in 1976 by ama ...

*Linbury Gallery at the

Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama The Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama () is a conservatoire located in Cardiff, Wales. It has three theatres: the Richard Burton Theatre, the Bute Theatre, and the Caird Studio. It also includes one concert hall, the Dora Stoutzker Hall, and ...

Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...

Linbury Studio Theatre The Royal Opera House (ROH) is a theatre in Covent Garden, central London. The building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. The ROH is the main home of The Royal Opera, The Royal Ballet, and the Orch ...

at the

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is a theatre in Covent Garden, central London. The building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. The ROH is the main home of The Royal Opera, The Royal Ballet, and the Orch ...

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist sit ...

*Linbury Studio at the

London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) is a drama school located in Hammersmith, London. Founded in 1861, it is the oldest specialist drama school in the British Isles and a founding member of the Federation of Drama Schools. In ...

*Headley Lecture Theatre in 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 ...

of Art and Archaeology at the

Raven Row Raven Row is a free art exhibition centre in Spitalfields. It was constructed from numbers 56 and 58, Artillery Lane. These properties were built about 1690. The area was formerly used for testing artillery and this portion of the lane was ...

Art Gallery in

Spitalfields Spitalfields () is an area in London, England and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in East London and situated in the East End of London, East End. Spitalfields is formed around Commercial Street, London, Commercial Stre ...

Centre for Mental Health The Centre for Mental Health is an independent mental health charity in the United Kingdom. It aims to inspire hope, opportunity and a fair chance in life for people of all ages with or at risk of mental ill health. The centre acts as a bridge b ...

Centre to improve the quality of lives for people with mental health problems *National STEM Centre *Centre for Justice Innovation *Astor Community Theatre in

Deal, Kent Deal is a coastal town in Kent, England, which lies where the North Sea and the English Channel meet, north-east of Dover, England, Dover and south of Ramsgate. It is a former fishing, mining and garrison town whose history is closely linked t ...

The Sainsbury family charitable interests

Eighteen of the grant-making trusts set up by members of the Sainsbury family, are known collectively as the Sainsbury Family Charitable Trusts. Institutions whose creation they fostered include the following: *

Ashden Ashden is a London-based charity that works in the field of sustainable energy and development. Its work includes the annual Ashden Awards, advocacy and research in the field of sustainable energy, and mentoring and practical support for award wi ...

Sainsbury Institute for Art The Sainsbury Institute for Art (SIfA) is based in the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts at the University of East Anglia in the United Kingdom. Organization The Sainsbury Institute for Art is an umbrella organization that brings together the ...

at the

University of East Anglia The University of East Anglia (UEA) is a Public university, public research university in Norwich, England. Established in 1963 on a campus university, campus west of the city centre, the university has four faculties and twenty-six schools of ...

, comprising: **

Arts Centre *** The Robert and Lisa Sainsbury Collection *** Sainsbury Research Unit for the Arts of Africa, Oceania and the Americas **Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures ***Lisa Sainsbury Library ** School of Art History and World Art Studies **South Asian Decorative Arts and Crafts Collection Trust *

Science Laboratory *

Sainsbury Management Fellowship The Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng) is the United Kingdom's national academy of engineering. The Academy was founded in June 1976 as the Fellowship of Engineering with support from Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who became the first senior ...

A scheme to develop UK engineers into leaders in industry *

Institute for Government The Institute for Government (IfG) is a British independent think tank which aims to improve government effectiveness through research and analysis. Based at 2 Carlton Gardens in central London and founded as a charity in 2008, it was initiall ...

A cross-party independent charity to improve government effectiveness *

Centre to improve the quality of lives for people with mental health problems *

Gatsby Charitable Foundation The Gatsby Charitable Foundation is an endowed grant-making trust based in London, founded by David Sainsbury in 1967. The organisation is one of the Sainsbury Family Charitable Trusts set up to provide funding for charitable causes. Although the ...

Annabel Sainsbury (married name Annabel Kanabus) set up, with her husband, the international AIDS charity

, and the charity GHE. Adrian Kanabus has set up Adrians Charity. Celia Sainsbury (married name Celia Blakey) set up the Celia Blakey Charitable Trust which makes grants to various other charities. The Sainsbury family are also major benefactors to

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, a battlefield, medieval castles, Roman forts, historic industrial sites, Lis ...

and the

National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty The National Trust () is a heritage and nature conservation charity and membership organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Trust was founded in 1895 by Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Hardwicke Rawnsley to "promote the ...

. In 2021 ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...

'' named the Sainsbury family among the most charitable people for the last 20 years with donations of £3.625 billion.

Sainsbury family interests in politics

The Sainsbury family also has varying political interests. *

Alan Sainsbury, Baron Sainsbury Alan John Sainsbury, Baron Sainsbury (13 August 1902 – 21 October 1998), was a British business executive and a leading member of the supermarket Sainsbury family. Early and private life Sainsbury was the son of Mabel Miriam ( Van den Bergh) a ...

was originally a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist. * An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...

, but joined the Labour Party in 1945 and sat on the party benches when appointed to the House of Lords in 1962. He defected to become a founder member of the

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties Form ...

(SDP) in 1981, and remained with the 'continuing' SDP faction, led by

David Owen David Anthony Llewellyn Owen, Baron Owen, (born 2 July 1938) is a British politician and physician who served as Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs as a Labour Party MP under James Callaghan from 1977 to 1979, and later ...

, following the creation of the Liberal Democrats in 1988. *

John Sainsbury, Baron Sainsbury of Preston Candover John Davan Sainsbury, Baron Sainsbury of Preston Candover (2 November 1927 – 14 January 2022) was a British businessman and politician. He served as the President of Sainsbury's, and sat in the House of Lords as a life peer and member of the ...

took the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

whip *

David Sainsbury, Baron Sainsbury of Turville David John Sainsbury, Baron Sainsbury of Turville (born 24 October 1940) is a British politician, businessman and philanthropist. From 1992 to 1997, he served as chairman of Sainsbury's, the supermarket chain established by his great-grandfath ...

also supported the SDP, but has taken the Labour whip since 1997, and was Science and Innovation Minister in the Blair government (1998–2006) *

was Conservative MP for Hove, 1973–97 *Camilla Sainsbury, daughter of Tim, is married to former MP

, who started as a Conservative but defected to Labour in 1999.

References

External links

Sainsbury Family Home PageSainsbury Family Charitable TrustsThe Sainsbury Archive Sainsbury family page
{{Sainsbury's Business families English families Political families of the United Kingdom