After 137 years, Gowings old menswear store in Sydney’s city centre, closed next week. Administrators have failed to find a suitable buyer for the retailer, and a liquidation sale at Market Street and Alexandria stores in Sydney is basically finished. Two other stores at Hornsby and Oxford Street have already been closed.
Gowings, which opened in 1868, has been struggling, with poor sales and intense competition from department stores in recent years. The Gowing family stepped away from the retail business five years ago they spun off GRetail on the stock market to concentrate on their property investment holdings. Since then the company has reported three consecutive years of losses. It lost $1.7 million in 2003, $3.4 million in 2004, and 13 million in 2005, compounded by a disastrous expansion to Parramatta. The company was on its way to a fourth loss and talks with rival budget menswear chain Lowes had broken down when the administrator was appointed. The Gowing family have recently advertised for new tenants in its Market Street building