Chris Self, chairman of Whitehall, has died after a short illness

It has been announced that Chris Self, chairman of Whitehall Garden Centres has died after a short illness.  

Chris suffered a heart attack on 7th April and subsequently underwent a triple heart by-pass in the Bristol Royal Infirmary on 17th April.  Unfortunately his heart wasn’t strong enough to recover following the successful operation and he passed away peacefully on the evening of 22nd May.  He was 76.

His funeral will be held on Thursday 5th June at 11.00a.m at St Cyriac’s Church, Lacock in Wiltshire.

When Chris took over the retail nursery business in 1974, it was trading from the 3 glasshouses at the front of the garden centre at Lacock.  

The site was one of the first in the country to get planning permission as a garden centre and so Chris Self can claim to be one of the founders of the garden centre industry.

Today the business trades from two sites with a turnover of £10m.  Both the garden centres at Lacock and Whitchurch have won many awards.

Until his illness Chris, as chairman, remained active in Whitehall.  The business is now run by his son and daughter in law, Peter and Claire Self.