Christmas gifts of free tea and sugar were handed out to 417 pensioners at Glasswells, one of the finale events to their 60th anniversary celebrations.

Veteran visitors to the Bury St. Edmunds store were handed 1kg of sugar and 0 tea bags in a resurrection of an old tradition, which started at the firm in 1954.  Shopper John Brown, 86, claimed his free gifts saying he could remember the days when the giveaway used to be an annual event at the old St. Andrew’s street store.

Glasswell’s founder, Jerry Glasswell, first started giving away 2lb of sugar and 8oz of loose tea to help pensioners who had been struggling at Christmas after World War Two.  The tradition continued until he died in 1984 and was brought back for one day only to mark 60 years of business for the store.