The N.Z. Vintage Radio Project

Lewis Eady is a music store in Auckland, started in 1884 by Lewis R. Eady, an English immigrant.  It was a family-owned business until 2019, when it was taken over by Chiron Group NZ. 

Hisotry, as retrieved from the Lewis Eady website (24 Aug. 2021).

Lewis R Eady arrived in New Zealand on the 24th August 1865 having set sail from England on the "Andrew Jackson" with his parents and two brothers, Arthur and William. Lewis showed an early interest in music and played both the piano and double bass.

At first Lewis worked in his brother Arthur's music business and it was Arthur who encouraged Lewis to set up his own music business to specialise in selling pianos.

Consequently, in 1884 Lewis opened his music shop in his own home on the corner of Mill Lane and City Road (behind Karangahape Road) where he and his wife Rosina worked at repairing, tuning, importing and selling second hand pianos.

Lewis' eldest son, Alfred, joined him in the business in 1906 and by 1910 the Company had become so successful that it was able to move to a proper shop in Liverpool Street and later, in 1912, to Karangahape Road.

With Queen Street fast becoming the retail centre of the city, Lewis and Alfred decided to move to Queen Street. In 1918 they opened a second shop in rental premises at 162 Queen Street and in 1928 moved to their elegant, purpose built music shop on the site of the old Hippodrome Theatre at 192 Queen Street. This building remained the home of the Company until 1980.

As the nature of retailing in the central city changed, so did the Company. It moved premises several times over the next couple of decades but finally, in 2001, to the new family-owned property at 75 Great South Road, Remuera (just north of the Market Road intersection).