Draper is the now largely obsolete term for a merchant in cloth or dry goods, though often used specifically for one who owns or works in a draper's shop or store. A draper may additionally operate as a cloth merchant or a haberdasher. The drapers were an important trade guild. A Cloth Merchant is, strictly speaking, like a draper, the term for any vendor of cloth. ... A haberdasher is a person who sells small items via retail, commonly items used in clothing, such as ribbons and buttons, or completed accessories, such as hats or gloves. ... A guild is an association of craftspeople in a particular trade. ...

A number of prominent people were at one time or another drapers:

• Margaret Bondfield
• John Lewis
• Anthony Munday
• H. G. Wells
• George Williams, founder of the YMCA
• [[Edward Whalley], regicide, cousin of [Oliver Cromwell]]

In 1724 Jonathan Swift wrote, in the guise of a draper, The Drapier's Letters, a series of satirical essays. Margaret Grace Bondfield (17th March, 1873-16th June, 1953), an English politician and feminist was born in Chard, Somerset, the eleventh child of Anne Taylor and William Bondfield, a textiles worker with left-wing views. ... One of John Lewis flagship branches in Glasgows Buchanan Galleries mall The John Lewis Partnership is a major United Kingdom retailer, operating department stores and, through its Waitrose subsidiary, upmarket supermarkets. ... Anthony Munday (or Monday) (1560?–August 10, 1633), was an English dramatist and miscellaneous writer. ... H. G. Wells at the door of his house at Sandgate Herbert George Wells (September 21, 1866 - August 13, 1946) was an English writer best known for his science fiction novels such as The War of the Worlds and The Time Machine. ... George Williams Sir George Williams (1821-1905), was the founder of the YMCA. Williams was born on October 11, 1821, on a farm in Dulverton, Somerset, England. ... YMCAs in the United States and Canada use this logo. ... Events January 14 - King Philip V of Spain abdicates the throne February 20 - The premiere of Giulio Cesare, an Italian opera by George Frideric Handel, takes place in London June 23 - Treaty of Constantinople signed. ... Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (November 30, 1667 – October 19, 1745) was an Irish priest, satirist, essayist, political pamphleteer, and poet, famous for works like Gullivers Travels, A Modest Proposal, A Journal to Stella, The Drapiers Letters, The Battle of the Books, and A Tale of a Tub. ...

See also

• Haberdasher
• Millinery
• Worshipful Company of Drapers