| Our History |
Four generations of Holdsworth Bros. Holdsworth Bros. Jewellers was established by Hampden William Holdsworth in the spring of 1884. His small shop on Chapel Street replaced that of a Parasol and Umbrella maker in the thriving working class suburb of Windsor. Hampdens parents arrived by ship to Geelong from England and it was here that Hampden was born, schooled and trained as a jeweller. At age 24, Hampden believed that Chapel Street Windsor was the place to open his ‘Jewellery and Watchmakers' store. The train line had been built with Windsor station a few doors down, a cable driven tram line ran down Chapel Street and there was talk of a new tram line to run along nearby Dandenong Road. It would still be many years before the first Automobile rolled down Chapel Street or electricity would be connected! In the first weeks business was slow for Hampden, but as more people came to know the name and service it represented his business slowly but surely became a success. Hampden was rewarded for his choice of location as this is where he met, dated and later married a pretty, local Windsor girl named Ellen. The following year, with a pregnant wife, Hampden decided it was time to ask his older brother George (also a jeweller) to join the business. In 1891 they changed the business name from 'H.W.Holdsworth' to 'Holdsworth Bros. Jewellers'. As a pair they were very successful, and by 1911 had saved enough to build a 'Modern jewellery store and factory' at 21-23 Chapel Street, Prahran. George and Hampden were into their fifties by this stage and with twelve children between them, it was time to retire. In 1916, the oldest son Roy took over the business. He and his brothers Keith and Wallace ran the shop successfully through to 1965 when they passed the business on to Roys son, John. John moved the store down to 'Pran Central' in 1967 as well as opening a new store at the brand new Eastland shopping centre in Ringwood. Soon after, he opened a shop in Bayside Shopping Centre in Frankston. In the late 1980's, with the help of his sister Margaret, son Nicholas and wife Anna, he opened up new stores in Brighton, Highpoint and Knox City. When the recession hit in 1990 John had five stores that he had borrowed heavily to establish. Almost overnight interest rates rose and jewellery sales dropped. John traded through one of the most difficult times in the company history, and managed to save the two stores at Knox and Eastland. By the mid 1990's the company was a success once more.
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