A year has passed, Lord Glendenning has died and Moray is working in Paris. Recently married to the philandering Tom Weston, who has a young daughter Flora, Katherine, now owner of the Paradise, summons Moray to return and revitalize the store, which is losing trade. On arrival back he proposes to Denise, who is still employed at the Paradise, and Audrey proposes to Edmund. New staff number shop-girl Susy and store-man Nathaniel, the former in love with the latter, unaware that he is a saboteur for Fenton, a rival tradesman seeking to buy the Paradise. Katherine is ...

A former business associate of Moray in Paris, the middle-aged but glamorous Clemence Romanis arrives to sell fireworks to the Paradise. She is independent and feminist, encouraging Denise's ambition and almost talking Audrey out of her marriage to Edmund, since married women cannot work in the store. She is also extremely flirtatious, aware that this way she can reel in the womanizing Weston for the fireworks contract. Jonas, feverish and debilitated, returns to the Paradise, having bribed a policeman to let him escape the charge of killing Bradley Burroughs. Dudley ...

With Audrey gone Weston backs Clara - on whom he has cast a lustful eye - as her replacement whilst Katherine champions Denise, whom Moray warns against being a pawn in the bickering couple's game. He believes that both will be satisfied if she fails - as it also hurts him. This makes her the more determined to apply, with herself and Clara making the final short-list. Before the interviews Denise is suspicious that Jonas seems to be in league with Weston whilst Dudley helps Flora overcome schooling problems with her father. When Weston cancels the staff's annual ...

A ragged middle-aged woman Ruby comes to the Paradise in search of shop-girl Susy, the daughter she gave away as a child to spare her her mother's alcoholism. Susy is not pleased to see Ruby and takes it out on Flora, leading to her dismissal. However the newly promoted Denise shows diplomacy in negotiating her reinstatement and mother and daughter part friends. Moray has a secret meeting with Fenton, who suggests they take over the Paradise, Fenton supplying the funds if Moray can provoke discord between the Westons. Initially reluctant Moray becomes more persuaded ...

As Denise introduces democracy to her department Weston opens a food hall, causing Fenton and Moray to worry about his expansion plans. The Paradise begins selling clocks and watches with Lord Glendenning's magnificent pocket watch a centre-piece donated by Katherine. She tells Moray that by tradition it should have passed to her husband but she kept this from him as her father always wanted Moray to have it. Jonas seizes on this to make Weston jealous but Weston has his own agenda to cause strife between Denise and Moray and proposes that she visit Paris without him ...

Katherine starts to regret her marriage to Weston and confides in Moray, whose sympathetic hug is observed by her husband. Weston agrees to Fenton's proposal to buy the Paradise and attempts to reconcile with Katherine. Katherine, however, wants more than sympathy from Moray and is upset at his rejection - as Weston discovers. Lucille Ballentine, a working class woman who has married the older Campbell, a wealthy brewer whom she met as his nurse, feels ill at ease in society and identifies with the salesgirls , whom she invites to tea. Campbell Ballentine, a self-made...

Weston engages Christian Cartwright, a prominent photographer, to take portraits of the Paradise staff after snapping a family group. Inspired by this Denise suggests that Christian photograph customers and sell them the pictures as postcards, thereby giving the store further publicity. Christian himself is smitten by camera-shy Clara and persuades her to pose for him before sharing a kiss. Weston tells Moray he will not sell the store, hoping one day to put Denise over him as manager but Moray, at Dudley's suggestion, works with his lover to turn the Paradise into a ...

Clemence returns to the Paradise, bringing rouge and dice to sell. However she is deeply in debt and Weston bought the debts from the collector who died shortly afterwards. Weston will wipe out the debt if Clemence agrees to become his mistress, causing Denise to try and help her flee the country. However Moray makes full use of the dice in a daring gamble which not only clears Clemence's dues but wins him back the Paradise - and Denise, who agrees to marry him. Exposed by Jonas as a coward Weston is shamed but Katherine comes to the store to accept him back again - ...