John Green Retires After 30 Years With H&J Smith

John Green said a big part of him will be left behind when the H&J Smith department store closes its doors on Saturday afternoon.

Experiencing mixed emotions when he shared with whatsoninvers.nz his final thoughts on the closure on Friday, John said H&J’s had been a part of the fabric of the community for 123 years.

“It’s not just about the loss of stock but the loss of place. We were a huge part of everyone’s routine. It meant different things for different people.”

Since the announcement of the closure, about 40 staff had been relocated to new businesses and another 15 had left for other jobs. A total of 220 jobs have been affected.

A team of 11 staff would continue to work on site until February next year to pack down the store and organise the remaining stock. John would finish and retire on December 15.

Describing it as a business “that gets under your skin,” in a good way, he lived and breathed it day in and day out.

But John said he was very much at peace with the decision, and the department store had been in good shape and was trading strongly leading up to the closure.

“I see the positives in it and the opportunity to go out on our own terms. I’m incredibly humbled to be given the opportunity to lead that process to where we have got to.”

Saying it was the best retail job he’d had in New Zealand, it was more a passion to him than work.

A new venture was planned with what was left, and while there was some interest in the building, the owners were looking to put it on the market in February 2024.

He said the Smith family would decide on what a good outcome for the city was, rather than just sell it to someone looking for an opportunity.

As for John, he will be moving to Wanaka to retire in the New Year, after a relaxing Christmas with family – including getting to know his new grandchild.

He might look at involving himself with small business mentoring and more judging both nationally and internationally for Dogs New Zealand – which has also been a big part of his life.

He’s come a long way since the early days growing up in the small Canterbury town of Culverden, where he first worked on a farm before becoming a trainee for Woolworths.

The big move south for H&J Smith came in 1993, and during his time in Invercargill he co-founded the Santa Parade with the late Fred Tulett (who died just last week), and was heavily involved in the City Streetscapes project.

After 50 years working, 30 years with H&J Smith at the centre of his world, John’s mantra was to always do things you liked, and said he would leave the job satisfied.