19th century Irish cobbler Robert Hannah emigrated from Ireland to New Zealand, via Australia, in 1866. Hannah established his first store, R. Hannah & Co., in
Charleston, New Zealand on 29 January 1868. It produced high-quality shoes for gold miners during the end of the
West Coast gold rush. Business quickly declined as gold started to run out. Miners left the area and property owners abandoned their land. Hannah originally planned to relocate to the United States but chose to move to
Wellington instead. He established a three-storey shop and factory, between
Cuba Street and Leeds Street, in 1874. By 1893, Hannah has 10 shops and his factory employed more than 250 people. Three stores at one of the Hastings stores died. Hannahs launched its own footwear brand Pulp in 1997.
2010s In 2010, there were 48 stores around New Zealand branded as Number 1 Shoe Warehouse. The stores were all rebranded as Number One Shoes in 2012, as the chain shifted its focus to affordable "trendy" shoes. In 2012, the
Commerce Commission formally warned Number One Shoes for advertising children's shoes made of vinyl and less-quality leather as "full-grain leather". It was the second time the Commission had investigated the chain over its claims. The chain said it mainly sold synthetic shoes and had made a "mistake in terminology". In 2014, Number One Shoes was the largest footwear retailer in New Zealand. In November of that year, it signed its first New Zealand supply deal with Christchurch
gumboot manufacturer Sandford Industries. Hannahs and Number One Shoes went through changes of ownership in 2015 and 2017. In 2018, Hannahs marked its 150th anniversary. It had 50 stores and was the country's largest retailer of international footwear brands such as
Clarks,
Hush Puppies and
Keds.
Newshub reported he had allegedly posted images of up to 250 teenage girls on
Facebook. He pleaded guilty to two charges of offensive behaviour, and was discharged without conviction. In 2021, Hannahs was starting to close its "shabby" or under-performing stores or merge stores with Number One Shoes. The chain had been losing market share to rival chain
Merchant 1948, department stores and online retailers due to its conservative business model. ==References==