James Stewart and his pioneering spirit

Meet James Stewart, our pioneering ancestor and muse.

James and Alexander Stewart – lovers of adventure and the finer things in life – were the sons of a Scottish haberdasher. Their enterprising spirit brought them to Australia to open a draper’s store on Brisbane’s Queen Street in 1860. Later it would become one of the country’s first department stores. James (known as ‘Jimmy’) went on to open several more stores, including James Stewart & Co. in Rockhampton, which remains operating today.

James Stewart & Co. was the first Queensland store to import international finery, such as hand-spun silks from Japan, hand-crafted knits from Scotland, bentwood furniture such as Thonet from Austria and glassware from Sweden. Jimmy’s sharp eye for design trends – combined with an innate ability to curate and source goods – kept him well ahead of his competitors until his death in 1923. The business continued to flourish and he realised his vision to construct a flagship store in 1926. With its café, fashion shows and couture garments direct from the fashion houses of Europe, it was revolutionary.

The business expanded into furniture and fashion manufacturing in the early twentieth century. With 150 years of history, James Stewart & Co. remains Australia’s longest surviving family-owned department store.

The James Stewart Furniture Collection draws inspiration from this visionary great, great uncle, evoking his sense of charm and employing his eye for detail.