Whiteaway Laidlaw was a British department store chain which operated mainly in Asia, including India, Ceylon, Burma, Singapore, Malaysia and China.

Described as drapers, outfitters and sellers of general household goods, they opened some of the earliest department stores in Asia, and operated on the basis of cash trading only, earning the nickname "Right-away, Paid-for".

In 1899, the partnership was dissolved when Whiteaway left the business but continued to grow under Laidlaw.

Known as the "Selfridges of the East" because of its reputation as an upmarket shopping destination, it continued to cater to mainly Europeans and wealthy anglicised locals.

[7] After independence in India in 1947 many British colonial officials and military personnel left and branches across the country gradually began to close with the branch in Kolkata closing in 1962.