Sydney Herbert Jones was born and brought up in Bristol which in those days was the major wine port in the United Kingdom. He worked for a Wine merchant in Bristol (called Swatchett and Gosling) where he learnt his trade. In 1886 he decided to branch out on his own, pooled resources with his widowed mother, and bought a wine company in Banbury with its premises in North Bar. With diligence and hard work, the company survived. In addition to the private retail trade, Sydney Jones built up a wholesale trade supplying Hotels and Public Houses in the Cotswolds, Stratford upon Avonand the Oxford area. He travelled around on a pony and trap to call on his customers, spending many nights out.

Early in the 1900s the North Bar premises were vacated to make way for the building of St. Mary's Church House. The business moved to 62 High Street, which was too small. In 1913 Sydney Jones was able to buy 27 High Street - an attractive old Hornton stone building which is still the Banbury shop. In the early 1930s the company was also able to buy a small piece of land on Marlborough Road. A bottling warehouse with a good bin storage area below was built and an additional storey was added to this in the early 1970s. After the 1st World War Sydney Herbert was joined by his two sons Harold and Philip. Happily both survived the conflict - Harold serving in the army in the Middle East, later in the Royal Flying Corps and Philip in East Africa.

The second World War was the next milestone in the company's history. Supplies soon started to dry up, especially the light wine which predominately had come from the continent. The trade had to exist on their pre-war stocks. A small amount of Port and Sherry continued to be shipped under government licence. After the 2nd World War, a substantial underground cellar was also purchased. It was not practicable to keep the shops open during the war. Instead we concentrated in supplying a fair share to our old established customers - both trade and retail. The black market was rife, but we retained our stocks to further good will, both with our existing and our highly fortunate new customers!

1954 Michael, Harold's son, joined the company after obtaining a Brewing Diploma at Birmingham and two years practical brewing. In 1959 Philip's son Derek also joined the company. Eventually Michael attended to the buying and internal management while Derek headed the sales side. Their two fathers gradually slid into the back seats. Harold died in 1971 at the age of 76 whilst Philip lived on till 1994 and died at the grand old age of 92. Michael's son Richard was appointed a Director in 1998, and is the fourth generation of Jones to participate in the administration of the company. Derek retired in 1997, while Michael continues as Director and Chairman of the company

We have now a large warehouse with its own Cellar Shop. This is due to expansion of the company. The New Cellar Shop is perfectly placed with free parking so easy to collect and load. Also the prices are better than the High Street shops because of the location next to the warehouse. Though there is a minimum purchase of 12 bottles (Mixed cases). We also have a new wine bar in our High Street Shop in Banbury. The new Wine Bar in Banbury is a stylish, relaxing place for people who want to meet with special friends, business colleagues or just to steal a few moments of quiet in the day.

Simon entered the wine trade by accident after being thrown out of Art College at the age of 19. After seven years working for national high street chains, during which he gained his W.S.E.T. qualifications, Simon joined S.H.Jones in 1997. He has since held the position of Assistant Manager at Banbury High Street, helped set up and launch the Leamington Spa branch, overseen the creation of the company web-site, and managed the Bicester branch since 1998. During his time in Bicester Simon has run a highly successful series of wine courses for Oxfordshire County Council, as well as numerous wine and whisky tasting events for the company. He has retained his interest in art, and his handiwork adorns all our branches in one form or another. Simon spends his free time as an instructor for S.K.A. Martial Arts, and also plays the guitar very badly.

We were excited when Ryan joined SH Jones in late 2006. He has extensive knowledge and experience in the wine industry, from working a number of vintages and winemaking both in New Zealand and France, to running an independently owned retail and corporate fine wine merchant in New Zealand. Ryan has a diploma in Viticulture, Food and Wine. Ryan's position is a new one in SH Jones, created to meet our corporate clients own unique set of requirements which we believe demanded a dedicated and professional SH Jones contact. Ryan has a real enthusiasm for all elements of the industry and we know our customers will enjoy working with him.