THE ROMANCE OF The CM. Ross Co. Ltd.

Evening Post, Volume CXXIV, Issue 108, 3 November 1937, Page 22

THE ROMANCE OF The CM. Ross Co. Ltd.

The pride of Palmerston North and the envy of other, cities,, the beautiful and extensive premises of the CM. Ross Co., Ltd., sprang from the humblest beginnings in the days when the now most prosperous and important provincial centre' in New Zealand was a mere village. Today, the Rosco Store fronts three busy streets and its handsome- four-storey facade: ofi ;The Square is one of the landmarks ■Of Palmerston North! .-*■?

The business was founded in 1883 by the late Mr.C. M. Ross, a man of unflagging energy, unusual business ability, arid unchallenged integrity. In those days railway communication wais still in its infancy, roads were rough and scarce, and the means of transport meagre. But with true pioneering courage'and enterprise, Mr., Ross took his business to. tho people Who could not come to him. Driving in a trap .or travelling on horseback with his samples in his saddle-bags;, this young business man journeyed north, south, east, and west, visiting Levin, Woodville, Dannevirke, and :Fo3tton,; riding j rough bush tracks and fording rivers and streams to solicit.orders for his wares. Before the railway was built thrdugh the Gorge'and'while still the virgin forest clothed the greater part of the country/he made his way regularly through the Forty-mile Bush and adjacent country, building up a clientele with such success that before long he had branch ■ businesses established in several of the outlying centres.

j Meanwhile the main business, known ■for many years as the Bon Marche, prospered steadily and from time to time building extensions were necessary to cope with the increasing trade. The two-storey wooden building remained until after the close of the century and in 1905 a long lease of the adjoining property was arranged (eventually to be purchased in 1925) i and an extensive building programme I was then undertaken, giving 85 feet more frontage to The Square and extending the premises right through to George Street. In 1918 an additional 21ft.6in frontage was purchased from the Union Bank. A year later the flourishing business was formed into a private company, followed by the building of a two-storey structure on the recently-acquired bank site. The I section at the corner of George Street and Coleman Place having also been purchased, the company erected a three-storey building there in 1915 and in 1916 opened tea-rooms oh the first floor. In 1925, a year after the, late Mr. CM. Ross's death, a section fronting Coleman Place yvas purchased from the Union Bank and > .two-storey building was erected and occupied by tenants. The store still progressed and tin 1927-28 the old portion was completely . rebuilt with the present mod' em structure of. three floors. Notwithstanding these extensions, the $ulse that throbbed in this living, vital store refused to be stilled, and last year a further floor was added, provision for this addition having been made in the main contract..

So today, after over half a century of service to the community, the name "Rosco" has become a household word all over New Zealand, imbued with the spirit of service so inspiringly treated by its founder, the late Mr. CM. Ross.