(source: wikipedia)A nippy was a waitress who worked in the J. Lyons & Co tea shops and cafés in London. Beginning in the late 19th century, a J. Lyons waitress was called a "Gladys". From 1926, because the waitresses nipped (moved quickly) around the tea shops, the term "Nippy" came into use. Nippies wore a distinctive maid-like uniform with a matching hat.
By the 1920s it was already long established in the advertising world that attractive female models... more
