SOMA PICHA NA MAELEZO KUHUSU HUU MJENGO NILIO FUNGUA DUKA LA PILI HAPO''
• Foyles pins hopes on old-fashioned books with new literary temple''
• Foyles pins hopes on old-fashioned books with new literary temple''
1903 William and Gilbert Foyle, aged 17 and 18, launch a bookselling business from their kitchen table beginning with the sale of textbooks after failing their civil service exams.
1904 The brothers open their first store in Cecil Court, near Leicester Square, London.
1906 The Foyles open Charing Cross Road store where they garner attention by selling books by weight.
1912 Foyles moves to larger premises at 121 Charing Cross Road.
1928 William Foyle's daughter Christina joins the business at 17, beginning a lecture series and writing a book on etiquette.
1929 Foyles builds what it claims is the world's first purpose-built and largest bookshop by taking over the building next door. William becomes known as the Barnum of bookselling after the circus impresario, PT Barnum.
1930 Christina Foyle founds the Foyles Literary Luncheons where ordinary people could meet famous authors. At their height, the gatherings attracted 2,000 people at one sitting.
1932 She is sent to the Soviet Union to collect bad debts. Later in the decade her father telegrams Hitler asking to buy the books he hears are being burned in Germany.
1940 Foyles is nearly destroyed as a bomb lands in Charing Cross Road. A bridge is built over the huge crater and William quickly names it the Foyles bridge
1940s Branches of Foyles can be found in Dublin, Cape Town and Johannesburg and the retailer sets up a handicraft shop and travel bureau as well as a plethora of book clubs including ones dedicated to children's books, thrillers, religion and romance. The pope is said to be a member of the Catholic book
1950s Foyles' mail order business grows to attract 35,000 letters a day requesting all kinds of books. William launches a philately department to resell all the rare stamps.
1960s Christina takes sole charge of the business when her father retires – but he still turns up regularly in his Rolls-Royce to hand out £5 notes to workers and take family and business partners to lunch at the nearby Trocadero.
1980s-1990s The business goes into decline as shoppers struggle to cope with its double queueing system to pay for their books.
1999 Christina Foyle's nephews Christopher and Bill Samuel take over the business shortly before her death. The pair embark on a £4m turnaround plan, revamping the store and introducing modern tills and IT systems.
2002 Foyles acquires Ray's Jazz shop.
2005 Foyles opens a second small bookshop at the Royal Festival Hall.
2007 Sam Husain joins Foyles board as chief executive and the company returns to profit a year later.
2008 Further branches open in St Pancras station and Westfield London shopping centre.
2011 Foyles' first UK branch outside London opens, in Cabot Circus, Bristol.
2014 Foyles moves to a new flagship store in the former Central St Martins arts college at 107 Charing Cross Road with four miles of book shelves. A seventh small shop in Waterloo opens but the retailer's St Pancras outlet is set to close.
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