The business was founded in 1945 formally known as 'Marsh and Russell'. There were originally 13 shops throughout Hertfordshire, today Southdown Hardware is the only one left and is still run by a member of the Russell family. This shop has been a hardware store since the 1950s and the current proprietor, Mr. Russell, has been working here for over 20 years. The small business in Southdown Road has seen many changes but most of the traditions you would have seen in the last decade such as being able to buy loose screws and having curtain wire cut to a specific length in metres (or if you’re old fashioned you can use feet and inches).

Southdown itself has seen many changes in the past 20 years such as the closing down of a greengrocer, a menswear shop, a newsagent and the domestic appliances shop. Somehow we have survived unlike many Hardware stores all over the country.