A truly local family business
In 2016 we celebrated 90 years of D&G Short.
19 Station Road, Flitwick was built during the 1920s by Charles Short and throughout the lifespan of the building has been home to a number of businesses; all of which have stayed firmly in the Short family.
In 1926 D&G Short began life as a small greengrocers before being turned into a milliners by Charles’s wife May Short. By 1946 when their son Dennis was de-mobbed from the services the shop was selling toys and a variety of garden products and was well known for selling Coopers Seeds. Charles passed away in the 1930s.
It was in 1962 that Dennis Short decided to expand the business from garden products alone and move towards ironmongery and DIY. Dennis’s son Barry joined the family business is 1966 and was responsible for driving its growth during this period; however, Dennis sadly passed away in 1985.
In 1985 Barry and Ruth’s son Chris joined the family business and a second store Mr Fixit opened in Flitwick. Not long after this the key cutting and locksmith service was established. Over the past 15 years Chris and his team have fabricated and installed many automated metal and wooden gates; an element of the family business which continues to go from strength to strength.
In February 2019, with a feeling of excitement and a nod to the years gone by, D & G Short decided to close the DIY section of the shop, making way for more focus on the locksmith, security and gate automation side.
Sadly at the great age of 100 Gwen passed away having taken huge pride in watching her family run the business just as they always had. Now that Ruth and Barry are retired their son Chris and daughter Vicki manage the business with Chris son Tom and the rest of the Staff. They work hard together to secure the family business for more generations of the Short family.