Arthur Barnett

Arthur Barnett (29 January 1873 – 10 February 1959) was a New Zealand businessman, and founder of the Arthur Barnett chain of department stores, the leading department store in Otago.

Early life Born in Dunedin on 29 January 1873, Barnett was the son of William Barnett, an auctioneer, and one of eleven children. Among his siblings was Matthew Barnett. He attended Albany Street School and Otago Boys' High School, leaving after his fourth-form year. He became an apprentice draper, working for A. & T. Inglis and later Fyfe & Cummings. At the latter firm he met his future wife Ethel Frances Reid. They married at St. Paul's Cathedral on 31 October 1900.

Professional life

In 1903, Barnett opened a small shop in George Street, Dunedin. His brother Matthew, a successful bookmaker in Christchurch, guaranteed a £900 loan to get the business going. His shop grew, largely on the strength of Barnett's skills at advertising his business. Within ten years, he had moved to larger premises and annexed two adjacent shops to create one of the South Island's largest stores. Around the same time, he trademarked an image of himself as a small jockey sitting astride a galloping Clydesdale horse (nicknamed "Can't stop") as a logo for his store. His wife, Ethel Barnett died on 2 July 1951. She was cremated the following day. After the death of his wife the same year as his OBE, he gradually withdrew from active life, leaving the store in the hands of his sons Jeffrey and Arthur, Jr.

Death Barnett died on 10 February 1959 aged 86 years after suffering a stroke earlier in the year at his beach house in Warrington.