A year of celebrating nine decades in retail

Invercargill family-owned hardware store E Hayes and Sons plans to spend all of 2022 honouring its rich history and significance to Southland. Uma Ahmed reports.

An Invercargill family- owned store will enter its ninth decade of doing business, having been able to remain open through many historical ups and downs including World War II.

Irving Hayes opened the store sometime in 1932 on Leven St, Invercargill, renting the building from the Railways Department for $2.85 a week.

E Hayes and Sons marketing manager Nick Hawes said the company was planning on spending the whole of 2022 celebrating its rich history and significance to Southland.

"We're unsure of the day that he [Irving Hayes] would have opened the doors.

"The anniversary year is more important to us than one particular date, simply because the scope and extent of what we're involved in," he said.

The company is quite often referred to as an old-school business, but it has grown with the times, Hawes said.

"It's a business that understands that it's about people, and it's about customers, and it's about servicing, and it's about knowledge of the product. That's real old-school retailing,."

According to Hawes, the company truly reflects how Southland has grown as a region.

The company was able to stay open during World War II, a global pandemic and other upheavals throughout the country and region's history.

"E Hayes and Sons are still in Invercargill, they're still working, and they're still growing.

"The new equipment, new tools, new products, new developments that have come along has been embraced by the store because our customers need that," he said.

A huge attraction for the store is its private motorworks collection, which includes Burt Munro's world-famous 1920 Indian Motorcycle, the "Munro Special".

Burt Munro's story was adapted into the film The World's Fastest Indian in 2005 with Anthony Hopkins as the lead actor portraying Munro.

Irving Hayes and his son Norman shared a great passion for motor racing and motorcycles. They began a lifelong friendship with Munro in 1949.

In fact, Irving financially sponsored many of Munro's racing attempts, including when Munro broke the world speed record in the United States at the Bonneville Salt Flats, Utah.

Irving Hayes died on February 16, 1978, and his son Norman, a self-taught mechanic, took over.

In 1980, Norman hand-built his famous "Machine", just to prove he could. It was constructed from random machinery and remains as a centrepiece in the store.

The company joined Hammer Hardware (then called Value Rite Group) to achieve greater purchasing leverage in the hardware sector in 1984. Hammer Hardware is now run under the Mitre 10 brand.

Throughout the years, the company has added extensions for other departments to meet the needs of its customers.

"We've grown from hardware into paint and automotive and also into giftware and clothing and outdoor power tools.

"So, we've become more than just the core hardware. Hardware still drives our business, but we've added in other areas which again is a reflection of the customers around us," Hawes said.

The E Hayes Motorworks collection is the Hayes family's private collection. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, enthusiasts from all across New Zealand and the globe would visit throughout the year. "That's a private collection built by passionate people who love those kind of things. They've collected them over years," Hawes said.

The collection has been put on display for customers to enjoy while they are shopping at the store. "It's created a very unique environment that's unlike anywhere else in New Zealand," Hawes said.

The company plans to slowly release details of all the historical milestones of E Hayes and Sons throughout 2022.

CAPTION:

The E Hayes and Sons storefront in Invercargill.

An early photo of Irving Hayes driving a 1910 Buick, which is now on display in the store.

Burt Munro at the Bonneville Salt Flats, Utah. A big attraction for the store is its private motorworks collection, which includes Munro's world-famous 1920 Indian Motorcycle, the "Munro Special".

Neville Hayes is the current managing director of the company. He is pictured with his father, Norman Hayes, at the store in 1995.