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Argus Fire Awarded The Kirkcaldie & Stains/David Jones Upgrade And Refurbishment

Announcement posted by Argus Fire 04 Feb 2016

New Zealand’s premier fire protection service providers, Argus Fire have been awarded the Kirkcaldie and Stains/David Jones upgrade and refurbishment for 2016. After servicing the fire protection systems in the Kirkcaldie& Stains complex for some time, Argus Fire Systems have been engaged to carry out extensive reconfiguration work to the fire protection systems, as part of the reformatting of the store to meet the requirements of David Jones.

This work is a fast tracked project to minimize downtime from the closing of Kirkcaldie & Stains, to the reopening under David Jones. The work is being carried out by Argus Fire’s central Wellington based team of fire protection technicians.

Kirkcaldie & Stains Limited was established in 1863 by John Kirkcaldie, a Scotsman who had served his apprenticeship as a draper, and Robert Stains, an Englishman who had worked in the retail trade in London. 152 years ago they initiated a tradition that is still upheld today.

 The two enterprising young men met in Sydney and came to the settlement of Wellington, which offered the best prospects for business. Each had a capital of £350, which they pooled, and opened their first store in Waterloo House on Lambton Quay on the site which is now occupied by the historic Bank of New Zealand building. Their small store was built from the timbers of a wrecked ship. The business thrived, having been founded on the principles of selling quality merchandise at a price that gave good value and service. Kirkcaldie & Stains opened for business on Wednesday 9 December 1863.

As the business grew a new store was built in the same location. The flourishing business again outgrew its home and in 1868 larger premises were built on reclaimed land at the corner of Lambton Quay and Brandon Street, part of the present location of the store.

 In 2015 Kirkcaldie & Stains entered into a conditional agreement with Australian retailer David Jones which will result in David Jones establishing its first department store in New Zealand from Kirkcaldie & Stains’ Lambton Quay premises from mid-2016.

Argus Fire have earned a reputation second to none for their quality and competitiveness through hard work and emphasis on high levels of service and continue to serve their expanding customer base. For more information on Argus Fire and all their services, please visit the website at http://www.argusfire.co.nz .