Renowned for its quality, the Rankin brand sold a mixture of home-grown produce and exotic items, imported from all over the globe.With branches in Princes Street, the West End, Tollcross, Corstorphine, Leith, and as far afield as Musselburgh, their shops were all over the place in the 1950s and ‘60s, before a rise in car ownership and supermarkets saw profits take a hit towards the end of the century.
The business was sold in 1985, but memories of the much-loved greengrocer chain remain strong decades later.
1. Say it with flowers
A display of flowers at Rankin's shop, 80 Princes Street, 1960. Photo: TSPL
2. Market Street
Rankin's occupied premises on Market Street where the Edinburgh Fruit Market was situated. Photo: TSPL
3. Rankins' Flowers and Fruit - New shop at 80 Princes Street Edinburgh - Exterior
Rankins' Flowers and Fruit - New shop at 80 Princes Street Edinburgh - Exterior Photo: TSPL
4. Rankins at Tollcross 1978
Exterior of the Tollcross branch of Rankins' florist shop in Home Street Edinburgh, September 1978. Photo: Albert Jordan