Sidney Myer
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Early Life
Sidney Myer was born Simcha Baevski in 1878 in Kritchev, Byelarus, the youngest of eleven children. Along with his siblings, he assisted with the management of his family's drapery business; however, a wave of pogroms led his family to join the exodus of Jews from Russia. While their parents moved to Palestine, Simcha's older brother Elcon emigrated to Australia in 1894, and Simcha joined him in 1899.
Following a brief spell in Melbourne, Elcon and Simcha moved to the goldfields town of Bendigo, where they opened a small drapery store; Simcha took on the role of hawker, travelling around on foot or with a horse and cart to sell fabrics and clothing to housewives in the greater Bendigo region. At this time Simcha changed his name to Sidney Myer - the surname originating in the middle name of his brother Jacob Meir Baevski who had died suddenly in 1896.
Sidney and Elcon were successful enough that in 1902 they opened a more substantial shop in Bendigo. Eventually, Sidney bought his brother's share of the store. Sidney Myer's first recorded donation to charity took place in 1907, by which time he was a well-known local figure employing over 60 people in what was described as Bendigo's biggest store.
The Myer Emporium
Starting in 1909, Sidney was able to travel to study merchandising methods overseas, and to forge links with manufacturers and exporters. In 1911 he borrowed heavily to purchase an existing drapery business in Melbourne; he partnered with its former manager, Lee Neil, and with his brother Elcon to transform it into the Myer department store. In 1914, the eight-storey Myer Emporium in Bourke Street was opened. Sidney was able to draw on the knowledge gained in his travels to introduce innovations previously unseen in Australian retail, such as open display of goods in situations where they could be handled, special sales, and high levels of employee morale. The Myer Emporium boasted a creche and play-room where mothers could leave their children under supervision while they shopped, as well as a telephone shopping service.
Leadership and Innovation
As his business grew, Sidney Myer became interested in assisting the Australian community in practical ways; in 1918 he purchased woollen mills, in order to support Australian manufacturing and to generate his own line of woollen clothing. He came to introduce work practices which were at that time virtually unknown, such as the provision of free on-site health and dental care to his employees, offering shares in the company to staff, and creating social and sporting groups among employees.
The Great Depression
During the Great Depression, Sidney Myer launched a public campaign urging people to buy Australian-made goods; he also chose to lower salaries, rather than lay off employees. In an open letter in the press, he urged others to find more opportunities to offer employment "even if it hurts your Treasury". He himself brought forward a 250,000 pound renovation of the Myer Emporium, which was virtually the only building work being undertaken in Melbourne at that time.
Sidney Myer's most famous act of public benevolence took place during the Great Depression; on Christmas Day, 1930, Sidney Myer hosted Christmas dinner in Melbourne's Exhibition Building for 11,000 destitute citizens. Free public transport was provided, and the meal served in shifts throughout the day. Sidney Myer himself received all the guests and waited on them with 300 staff from the store; each child was presented with a box of toys. Sidney Myer carefully explained to those who attended that the event was not charity, but that attendees were his honoured guests.
In 1931, Sidney Myer provided the government with tens of thousands of pounds to enable the employment of over a thousand people to construct the Yarra Boulavard and Como Park. In 1932, he again embarked upon a building project to extend the Myer store and generate employment.
Family
In 1920, Sidney Myer married Merlyn Baillieu; they were to have four children (Kenneth, Neilma, Baillieu and Marigold). He travelled frequently during this period, and all of his children were born in San Francisco.
Death
Sidney Myer died unexpectedly of heart failure whilst walking near his Toorak home on 5 September 1934. He was 56 years old. According to some reports, 100,000 people lined the seven-mile route of his funeral procession.
Philanthropy during Sidney Myer's lifetime
Sidney Myer's first major gift was 25,000 Myer shares (worth $2.5 million in 21st century figures) to the University of Melbourne, which was then (1926) in such financial difficulties that it was unable to purchase new books for its library. He also gave generously to the Shrine of Remembrance appeal and made a number of substantial gifts to Melbourne hospitals, to the Brotherhood of St Laurence and to other diverse organisations. He also gave for the establishment of what is presently the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and for a series of free summer concerts which continue to this day. Many of the benefactions made during his lifetime were unrecorded; it is believed that he gave away in excess of £100,000, or over $5 million in 21st century terms.
The Philanthropic Legacy
Sidney Myer bequeathed 10% of his estate "in perpetuity, for the charitable, philanthropic and educational needs of the community in which I made my fortune." This legacy led to the creation of the Sidney Myer Fund. His sons Kenneth and Baillieu Myer established The Myer Foundation in the late 1950s, and many Myer family members continue the philanthropic legacy to this day.
Sources
- Liffman, Michael. A Tradition of Giving: 75 Years of Myer Family Philanthropy
- Barber, Stella. Sidney Myer: A Life, A Legacy. Hardie Grant Books, Melbourne, 2005.
- Australian Dictionary of Biography