Michael Hill International Ltd. is a speciality retailer of jewellery. As of June 2024, it operates 300 stores in Australia, New Zealand and Canada. The company employs approximately 2,600 permanent employees. Its headquarters are in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

, Australia.

History

The company started in 1979, when Michael Hill and his wife, Christine, opened their first store in the New Zealand town of

Whangārei Whangārei () is the northernmost city in New Zealand and the largest settlement of the Northland Region. It is part of the Whangarei District, created in 1989 from the former Whangarei City, Whangarei County and Hikurangi Town councils to admi ...

. A unique retail jewellery formula that included dramatically different store designs, a product range devoted exclusively to jewellery and almost saturation levels of high impact advertising elevated the company to national prominence. The company expanded to 10 stores by 1987, the same year it listed on the

NZX New Zealand's Exchange (), known commonly as the NZX, is the national stock exchange for New Zealand and a publicly owned company. NZX is the parent company of Smartshares, and Wealth Technologies. , the NZX had a total of 179 listed securiti ...

. Also in this year, Michael Hill Jeweller expanded into Australia, opening four stores. In 2000, Michael Hill Jeweller had 40 stores in New Zealand, including 12 in Auckland. In 2002, the company expanded into Canada, opening its first stores in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, British Columbia. Michael Hill now has a presence in five Canadian provinces:

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, Alberta,

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

, Manitoba and

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

. In September 2008, the company entered the United States market by acquiring 17 stores in

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

and

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

from Whitehall Jewelers. By mid-2013 over 60% of overall sales were from Australia, only 20% from New Zealand, with the rest from North America. Emma Hill, the daughter of Michael Hill, succeeded him as chairperson after the November 2015 annual general meeting. In April 2018, Michael Hill closed their nine remaining stores in the US. In April 2023, Michael Hill announced it would acquire Australian jewellery chain Bevilles and its 26 stores for .

Michael Hill watches

In late 2006, following a five-year trial, the company launched its own brand of watches under the Michael Hill name, phasing out all but the Citizen brand of watches by the middle of 2007. By mid-2008, only Michael Hill-brand watches were available in the company's stores.

Timeline

* 1979: Michael Hill opens his first store in Whangarei, New Zealand. * 1981: Michael Hill began manufacturing his own jewellery in house. * 2006: The Michael Hill Watch Collection was launched. * 2009: The Michael Hill Charms Collection was launched. * 2010: Michael Hill announced the closure of eight stores in the United States. * The company announced it was in a $40m NZD dispute with the

Australian Taxation Office The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is an Australian statutory agency and the principal revenue collection body for the Australian Government. The ATO has responsibility for administering the Taxation in Australia, Australian federal taxation ...

. * 2013: Michael Hill announced a new global brand, including bridal products and other jewellery which was more feminine. * 2014: Sales in Australia were described as "lacklustre" due to Australian economic performance. The company settled its dispute with the

. * 2015: The company opened a store in New York City in April 2015. Australian sales improve after poor performance in that market during 2013–2014. Sir Michael Hill moved to a new role of Founder/President, as his daughter Emma became Chairman.

Gallery

File:Michael Hill - first NZ store.jpg, alt=Michael Hill and family standing outside the entrance of their first jewellery store, Michael Hill and family in front of their first store File:Michael hill in Chadstone Shopping Centre 2017.JPG, Michael Hill Jeweller at the

Chadstone Shopping Centre Chadstone Shopping Centre (colloquially known as Chaddy) is a shopping centre located in the south-eastern Melbourne suburb of Malvern East. Chadstone Shopping Centre is the largest indoor shopping centre in Australia by both floor area and nu ...

File:Michael Hill Jeweller Upper Canada Mall 2012.jpg, Michael Hill Jeweller at the

Upper Canada Mall Upper Canada Mall is the 25th largest shopping mall in Canada, located in Newmarket, Ontario, Newmarket, Ontario, Canada. The mall is situated on the northwest corner of the Davis Drive West and Yonge Street intersection. The mall is owned and ope ...

References

External links

Official Website
{{Retailers in New Zealand Companies based in Brisbane Companies listed on the Australian Securities Exchange Companies listed on the New Zealand Exchange Cross-listed companies Jewellery retailers of Australia Jewellery retailers of Canada Jewellery retailers of New Zealand New Zealand companies established in 1979 Retail companies established in 1979 Watch brands Clock manufacturing companies of Australia Watch manufacturing companies of Australia