Former type Department Store Defunct 1995 Founded 1880 | Ceased operations 1995 | |
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.
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.
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.