Georges (store)
| Department Store | |
| Industry | Retail |
| Founded | 1880 |
| Defunct | 1995 |
| Headquarters | Melbourne |
| Products | clothing, manchester, leather goods, soft furnishings, furniture, hardware, food |
Georges was a department store in Melbourne, Australia, established in 1880 and closed in 1995.[1]
Georges store begun as George & George, founded by brothers William and Alfred George. They opened a store at 11-17 Collins Street East in 1883, but the development of the Block Arcade in 1888 saw them move to 162-168 Collins Street (originally 89 Collins Street East). This classical revival style building had been built by David Mitchell for the Equitable Co-operative Society Ltd, and was designed by architects John Grainger and Charles D'Ebro. It was extended through to Little Collins Street, and remodelled in 1887/88 by Albert Purchas.[2]
The store's motto was Quod facimus, Valde facimus (What we do, We do well), as the firm had a philosophy of providing exclusive goods and meticulous service. The firm was taken over by Cox Brothers from 1960–66, and then David Jones Limited bought the business in 1981.[3]
References
- ↑ eMelbourne Encyclopedia, Blog, 'Georges'
- ↑ Australian Heritage Database, Georges Australia Limited Building
- ↑ Dunstan, Keith, The store on the hill, Macmillan, Melbourne, 1979