User:MargotMcKinney

MargotMcKinney (talk) 19:27, 10 October 2017 (UTC)== McKinney's Jewellers == The McKinney family business was founded in 1884 by John McKinney who established a business selling necessities to those on their way to the gold fields. John and his young wife Sarah soon grew the business to be the premier suppliers of assorted "necessities and luxuries" to the growing town of Toowoomba and the surrounding rural market in Western Queensland. Under the stewardship of the second generation, Kenneth McKinney, and later his son John Kenneth McKinney (who is still at the store most days), the business grew to be the pre-eminent department store of the thriving Darling Downs region.

Servicing a large and demanding rural and city clientele through both wholesale and retail businesses, the department store stocked goods such as sporting equipment, cameras, toys, boats, guns, electrical goods, cosmetics, women's apparel, imported English and European china and silverware, furniture – and, always, precious jewellery.

The family business grew substantially in 1988 with the acquisition of Australia's oldest jewellery firm, Hardy Bros from Christopher Skase's Qintex. This included prestige showrooms in Melbourne, Sydney, Double Bay, Port Douglas and the Gold Coast which were run by John's three daughters Margot, Sally and Jane.

Hardy Bros. was divested in 1997 when Margot got married and moved to Kuala Lumpur, Sally got married and moved to Singapore and Jane became a full time mother.

In 2004, John McKinney closed the Toowoomba store and opened McKinney's Jewellers at Brisbane's Emporium. McKinney's Jewellers is recognised today as one of Australia's most prestigious jewellery stores.

John Kenneth's daughter Margot McKinney continues to be involved in the family business as well as running her own luxury jewellery brand Margot McKinney while fifth generation family member Andrew Welch has recently joined the family business. ~