Farmers manager Graeme Walker will celebrate 50 years with the business when it returns to the Tauranga CBD after the redevelopment of the site.

'I first started here with Farmers in 1971 in menswear and was promoted to menswear department manager/buyer,” says Graeme, as he looks through old photos and clippings in his office at the Farmers CBD building.

'I would travel up to Auckland every month to choose stock for the local store.”

The CBD store temporarily closed its doors yesterday, with redevelopment starting next week.

It's moving to Tauranga Crossing at Tauriko to allow the $100 million-plus redevelopment of the iconic CBD site where Farmers has served generations of Western Bay families.

Graeme says the new Farmers CBD building would be 'glamorous – and fantastic for the CBD, especially alongside all the other new developments such as the university, the waterfront, and the many other new apartments and hotels”.

He senses the momentum growing in the CBD, partly thanks to the Farmers redevelopment.

'Everybody will take motivation from the Farmers redevelopment – the new building will set a benchmark for the standard of development in the CBD.”

Farmers will return to the CBD site in 2020, to be joined by several other major James Pascoe Group retail brands, cafes and restaurants, and a Melbourne-style laneway.

An inside look of the old Farmers store.

According to Graeme's records, Farmers opened its first Tauranga store in 1921, on The Strand.

This store burned down during a burglary and was rebuilt.

Farmers later moved to lower Devonport Rd and then, in 1967, to its current site at the corner of Elizabeth St and Devonport Rd.

'In the early days, Farmers sold everything from outboard motors to paint, spa pools, number-8 wire, boats, drapery and jewellery – and even had its own furniture factory, ” says Graeme.

In 1974, the current CBD building became Farmers' first-ever mall, which included several other speciality stores as well as Farmers.

This same year, Graeme began a management programme before moving to the Farmers store in Mangere, Auckland, as an assistant manager.

After various adventures at Farmers stores in Otorohanga, Te Kuiti, Tokoroa and Napier/Hastings, Graeme returned to Tauranga in 1990 to take up his current role as manager of the CBD store.

'It was a good time to move back and enjoy a great location – and a fantastic place to bring up our children.

'The other exciting part was that there was a refurbishment here in 1990-91. We knocked out the wall and took over the mall, so the entire building all became Farmers.”

Apart from a three-year stint in Hamilton, Graeme has been at the Tauranga store ever since.

'We had another refurbishment in 2002 that changed the store design and layout.

'It was about taking people on a ‘journey' through the store – but nowadays it's all open plan again.”

Graeme says the basics of retailing had remained constant over the years. However, customers had a lot more choice these days because of technologies including online shopping, the ability to shop with phones, and Farmers loyalty cards.

'People continue to enjoy urban shopping and tend to shop in malls – and Farmers has been moving with that model since the 1970s.”

Having seen so many changes, what does Graeme think of the latest redevelopment?

'Farmers is part of the James Pascoe Group, and we are very fortunate in that they are a wonderful company to work for.

'The company is definitely well-prepared to make it a smooth transition for our employees and our customers.”

He says the company was 'very caring” of employees and that all in-store staff had been offered roles during the redevelopment, mostly choosing Tauriko.

'All staff are excited to go out there and they will be even more excited to come back here.”

'As will I.”

An artist's impression of what the new site will look like.

Farmers Tauranga timeline

1920s Farmers opens its first store, on The Strand

Later Farmers moves to Devonport Rd

1967 Farmers moves to its current site

1972 Renovations double the store's size

1974 A mall is built alongside Farmers

1991 The mall becomes part of Farmers

2002 A major refurbishment takes place

2018 Demolition of Farmers and two neighbouring buildings with the objective of returning Farmers to the site before Christmas 2020