The George Courts Department Store is one of K Road's landmark buildings. 

Completed in 1926 it dominates the K' Road skyline. Following the closure of the store in 1988 the building was converted into being an apartment building in 1993.

In 1886 two brothers, George and Frederick Court established a drapery shop in Auckland. In 1889 they were joined by their brother John, his wife Sarah and their eight children who had just emigrated to New Zealand.

By the time John joined the partnership in September 1889 the business had expanded to a second store (possibly on the corner of K' Road & Liverpool Street). Frederick retired from business about two years after John's arrival. 

The firm continued to trade as Court Brothers, drapers and clothiers, in Karangahape Road and Queen Street.

By 1902 George and John Court were operating from three shops and with their older sons entering the business they decided to dissolve the partnership and establish separate firms. This was an amicable arrangement. George remained in Karangahape Road and John took over the two Queen Street shops.

After 1910 the John Court Department Store on the corner of Queen Street and Victoria Street East was known as the DSC following the purchase by John Court of the Direct Supply Company. The John Court corner was a landmark and favourite meeting place for citizens and visitors to Auckland. It boasted several elements that were to become key attractions for most Departments Stores - a public clock on the street facade, electric lifts and a rooftop garden and tea rooms.

In 1966 John Court Limited was purchased by an Auckland-based syndicate, and in 1972 it was sold to Cornish Investments Limited of Wellington and soon afterwards the Queen Street Store was closed. [Paraphrased from Mogford, Janice C. 'Court, John 1846 - 1933'. Dictionary of New Zealand Biography.]



George Court and his wife Emily.

The four sons of George Court.

The Motto of John Court's on Queen Street was that the JC corner was “always busy" which was less of an idle boast than a plain statement of fact.

The motto of George Court & Sons was the "Big Store" referring more to its extensive range of goods rather than its actual physical size.

George Courts started as a Drapery store at a time when ready-to-wear clothing simply didn't exist. Cloth merchants were a feature of all settlements - people had to purchase cloth and sew it themselves or take it to a dressmaker or tailors. Sewing was basic skill taught to all females regardless of class, along with knitting and embroidery. 

Men's outerwear clothing was always made by male tailors who occupied a nebulous position somewhere between the lower and middle class. Shirts on the other hand were usually sown by women. Certain items such as women's intimate apparel and corsets were dealt with exclusively by women. 

By contrast shoes for both men and women were invariably made and retailed by men. Men had been traditionally favoured as shop assistants but as the 19th century progressed greater numbers of women were employed. Employers realised female customers were adverse to discussing certain things with men and if a store wanted to sell ladies corsets and underwear for example, having female staff was not just an advantage but really rather essential. However female assistants were also paid a lot less than their male counterparts which lead to resentment as male shop assistants perceived their jobs being stolen by cheaper labour.

By the turn of the 20th century large emporiums had developed, selling a large range of wares (George Courts being a case in point). These included shoes, corsets, hats, cosmetics and toys, underselling and outflanking many of the smaller specialist shops. This pattern was accelerated by the appearance of Ready-to-wear clothing which itself was the result of technological advances during the 19th century. 

Previously all sewing was done by hand - after the middle of the 19th century the new Sewing Machines revolutionised clothing manufacturing.

Not only did prices drop but the range of items expanded. It was now feasible to create large numbers of garments in a range of colours and sizes. Larger shops and Department stores had a great advantage over smaller retailers as they could stock a wider selection of items in a burgening range of sizes.

George Courts 1926

The huge metal-framed windows were designed to display Persian carpets and fabric drops to attract attention from the other side of the street. In the centre of the building rose a grand cast iron staircase in the Neo-Greek style imported from Britain. It was wide enough to let two pairs of people to walk abreast (pair of ladies walking up, pair of ladies walking down).