FIRM TO CELEBRATE CENTENARY TODAY

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29932, 20 September 1962, Page 3

FIRM TO CELEBRATE CENTENARY TODAY

One of the oldest merchandising firms in Christchurch, and certainly the oldest bacon and small goods manufacturing firm. T. H. Green and Company, Ltd., will celebrate its centenary today. The firm was founded on September 20, 1862. Its first premises ware in Colombo street, almost opposite the □resent site of the Bank of New Zealand. A few years later the firm moved its bacon curing factory out to Addington where it has remained to the present day. The factory has been altered many times to cope with the expansion in production. From its Start with only a small factory with one employee and the founder nt the firm. T H. Green, the firm has expanded until now it has its large factory at Addington, its two-storey offices and warehouse in the city, and employs more than 100 persons. For the first 30 years the firm was essentially a family business, but now there are no Greens taking an active part in the management of the business, artbough Mrs I. H. Stringer, a granddaughter of Richard Green, one of the brothers who started the firm, is a <Krector.

In its first 40 years the firm concewtrated on its small goods, bacon, sausages and ham. About 1900 it began its merchandise store and this has now increased to the stage where the warehouse stocks more than 5000 items of grocery goods. The firm’s first warehouse was in Tuam street and then in

1919 the present premises in Lichfield street were purchased.

Formed into a private company in 1915, the firm has had only two sets of directors in the last 47 years. In 1915 when the firm was incorporated the directors were Messrs R A. Green, W. T. Bottrell, and H. M. French Mr W. Sherris replaced Mr Green, who died in 1924, but otherwise the board of directors remained unchanged until 1945. In that year, Messrs W. G. V. Fernie, P. M. Mac Shane, R. J Bate, and Mrs Stringer were appointed as a new board.

The management of the firm has - shown the same degree of stability. The first manager to be appointed outside the Green family was Mr Q M Wilson, who was manager until 1943. He was followed by Mr J. R. Dench, 1943-45. and the present manager, Mr G. A. Tilley. Mr Tilley said yesterday that in the firm’s early days it used to supply bacon right throughout New Zealand. And at one stage it was sending bacon to Fiji. With no refrigeration, bacon was heavily cured, but now the trend is for bacon to be milder and more quickly cured. There were no trade secrets in curing ham and

bacon, although some firms adopted slightly different methods. But in the firm's small goods, some of the ingredients that were used were closely guarded secrets. The company’s, centenary celebrations will consist of a buffet dinner and a cocktail party at the Winter Garden this evening.