Lawrence Batley

Lawrence Batley was an entrepreneur and philanthropist who was born in the town of Huddersfield, in the English county of Yorkshire, and went on to pioneer the wholesale cash and carry business, and to support local endeavours in the areas of arts, education and sports.

Leaving school at the age of 14, Lawrence Batley's jobs involved working in a solicitor’s office, the insurance business, the Royal Air Force, and the pharmaceuticals business. However his biggest contribution to business came when he founded Batley’s Cash and Carry; he was the first to come up with the phrase and the concept of cash and carry, and his ideas caught on in a big way, bringing a whole new way of working to retailers across the UK.

In later life Lawrence Batley sponsored the Lawrence Batley Seniors Tournament (a veterans golf competition), the Lawrence Batley Stand at Huddersfield Town A.F.C.'s new ground, the Lawrence Batley Theatre and the National Art Education Archive Centre at Bretton Hall College.