The History of John Martin's

Name: The History of John Martin's
Start: 2026-11-04T13:00:00+09:30
End: 2026-11-04T13:00:00+09:30
Location: Genealogy SA

About

This month for Wednesdays @ 1, Paul Flavel will join us to share stories and memories of the beloved and iconic department store, John Martin's.

Opened in 1866, John Martin’s flourished for over 130 years, until the unthinkable happened when it closed in 1998. Paul Flavel opens the doors again with his book, 'John Martin's - The Story of South Australia's Beloved Department Store', sharing stories from former staff and customers, rarely seen photographs and deep research into the history of this South Australia icon.

In what would have been its 160th year, time has not dulled South Australians’ love for ‘Johnnies’. Thousands of people worked there and even more loyally shopped there. John Martin’s was the company that brought The Beatles to Adelaide, and the store that delighted generations of children with its Magic Cave and Christmas Pageant. Run by the illustrious Hayward family for most of its existence, John Martin’s gave everything it had to the people of South Australia through unwavering charity and strong sense of community.

Paul Flavel grew up in the Adelaide Hills during the 1990s. It was during this time that his frequent ‘trips to town’ with his Grandma became the catalyst for this book. Since 2009, Paul has called Melbourne home and has built a successful career in Human Resources in both retail and the mental health sector. Paul holds a Masters of Human Resources from RMIT. An avid reader and occasional writer mostly during high school, this book is Paul’s first publication, and he regards this as his gift to the people of South Australia, particularly the staff of John Martin’s.

You can find more about his book at his website: www.johnmartinsbook.com