Gannaway Family. Gannaway Family
Gannaway’s Nyabing
“In The District For The District”
1970 to 1997
By Ray Gannaway JP
20.10.2011
1970: Store with Ross Crosby’s Valiant in side driveway of the shop.
How did the Gannaway family find it’s way to Nyabing from the suburb of Bayswater in 1970? It is a story in itself!!
It all began on a fairly hot day in November 1969 when my father Jack Gannaway, who had worked for 40 years in the movie theatre business (working every night of the week), decided with all of their four children off their hands they would seek a change of employment. Mum Mary was now left at home without any family every night as all of the children, except for Ray who worked for the West Australian Newspapers, were married leading their own lives in different parts of WA.
On this day in November, 1969, Dad suggested we take a drive to Gnowangerup to check out the Drive In theatre there as it was for sale with the view that we may run the Drive In together. At this time Dad had trained me in movie projecting and I worked part time at the Parkline Drive In after work at the newspaper.
We drove to Gnowangerup on the Saturday to have a look at the set up there. It was 16mm projecting equipment and gravel ramps with a very colourful client base. They were asking $35,000. Dads experience in the industry was second to none and he decided this was not the opportunity he thought it may be.
At that time my sister Irene and her husband Graeme were managing Tom Harts farm in Ongerup, so we stayed the night there. Graeme mentioned he had heard the Nyabing General Store was for sale. We came home thru Nyabing that day and met “Bulla” Stephens, the rest is history. Following a poor service level from the agent, we dealt direct with “Bulla” and the deal was done for a January 1970 takeover.
It was a huge change for Jack & Mary Gannaway. Mary had stopped work 30 years prior to raise their four children while Jack, at the age of 54, was advised by the Commonwealth Bank not too proceed with the purchase. However we walked into the R & I Bank in Morley Park – talked with a loans officer named Mike Cordingley, who granted us the finance to go ahead – without hesitation. Coincidentally when we arrived in Nyabing, Mike had become the R & I Bank manager in Katanning.
Life begins in Nyabing
January 1970 saw the start of our 27 years of business operations in Nyabing. We had purchased a small country general store with a back shed full of “dead wool”, rats, mice and empty cool drink bottles. The shop had a wooden floor with high heel breaking cracks and a pressed metal ceiling that provided our first challenge when we decided to paint it white changing from its dark green colour.
For the first two years Jack and Mary worked with great energy with the assistance of June Davis (Mills), Kerry Goodchild and Lorraine Webse, with a host of part time ladies as well.
From 1970 to 1972 Ray completed his newspaper qualifications and then married Lyn Hollis. Together they came to join Jack and Mary in February of 1972. For the first two years Ray and Lyn leased the Badgebup Store and they ran that in conjunction with the Nyabing store.
From 1972 the shop expansion began, the original size being 275sq metres to 1,074 square metres in 1997. The first big change was to “Self Serve” shopping with the introduction of The 4-Square Grocery chain and weekly specials. This went on to become Foodland and Homestead Hardware. Our aim was to provide a complete shopping experience from food, fresh fruit and vegies, hardware, clothing, TV, toys, fridges, footwear, trophies, newsagency, Post Office, garden nursery, Castrol Oils, bulk fuels, Liquid Air gas products, steel supplies, cement and anything else you may need.
In the 27 years we employed over 120 different people – all adding that something special to our business. The saddest moment in our 27 years was when we lost our workmate and friend Kevin (Kiwi) Harman in a forklift accident in Perth while he was doing a Perth run in one of our trucks, Kiwi died a week later leaving behind a young wife Gayle, and children Will, Sarah and Tim. This occurred in 1992.
1970 -1979
1978 Store Frontage
The seventies saw the shop and its service begin to grow. The footy club also helped lay the foundation for Ray and Lyn’s home. Their two daughters Kirsty and Leanne were born in 1975 and 1978 respectively. At that time Lyn lost the use of her kidneys and the first appliance in the house that Ray and Jack built was a Kidney Dialysis machine. Lyn then had Dialysis Monday, Wednesday and Friday every week. Lyn receive great support from the community and Lyn was still very active in the business and community. Dixie Beattie was ever present when required for assistance with the dialysing process.
The shop purchased it’s first new truck in 1978 and commenced running to Perth every week carrying all shop stock, fresh fruit & vegies and beer for the Nyabing and Pingrup hotels, plus general freight. It was a five-ton truck and, over time, we saw five trucks purchased growing in size to a 13 ton truck by 1987. The first major building extension was finished.
We purchased Laurie and Sally Gilberts fruit and vegie shop and incorporated the fresh fruit section into the new extension of our shop. The flow of market fresh fruit and vegies began and, for the staff, every Wednesday was a very frantic day with fresh stock arriving around 12 tons at a time.
1980 – 1989
1986 Store Front
Kirsty, Lyn & Ray Gannaway with Veronica Dye
The eighties saw the shop grow even further with more building additions. During this time a purpose built bulk fuel tanker was purchased for on farm fuel delivery. Up until then it was all 44-gallon drums on a flat bed truck. The business had grown to the point where extra staff were needed. Janet Campbell (Dye) ran the post office for around nine years and Kirsty Gannaway for about the same period. Mike Hobley, Darryl Carpenter, Kevin (Kiwi) Harman, Steve Marten and Pete (Crowie) Coldwell all worked over the 80’s and 90’s to make the business the success it was. Veronica (Bonnie) Dye and Mum, Astrea Dye along with Dixie Beattie lead a long line of wonderful people that worked tirelessly in the shop over many years.
Jack and Mary Gannaway continued to work long hours until 1986 when they retired to Busselton, finishing an amazing 16 years development of the shop. Lyn had her first kidney transplant. This transplant lasted two years before failing however Lyn received another transplant two years later which was successful for the rest of her life.
The range of product available was ever increasing and sales reflected a strong community. The exterior of the shop had changed three times since 1970, with still more to come.
1990 – 1997
1984 First large truck for road haul from Perth
The 90’s saw more expansion with the shop and its loading bay occupying the entire block, a new front verandah was built with the colonial rolled frontage. Business and the town was strong. In 1992 the shop was a very busy place servicing businesses in the towns of Wagin, Katanning, Nyabing, Pingrup and Kukerin with fresh fruit and vegies.
This was the year Kiwi Harman had his accident, which devastated the Gannaway family and the community at large. It was the lowest point in a 22 year history of our business. Kiwi’s work ethic and friendship were just the best and we miss him to this day.
As the business grew Steve Martens and Pete Coldwell joined the crew and continued the development of the business. It was a very happy and dedicated team. Steve managed the food supermarket aspect while Pete managed the fuel distribution and hardware sides of the business.
1996: New Fuel Tanker and Perth General Freight Truck
In 1994 Jack Gannaway passed away at the age of 77 years. He and Mary’s vision and work ethic had transformed a small country store into a thriving business turning over in excess of $4.5 million per year.
Early in 1997 Lyn’s health had begun to seriously deteriorate and, with Leanne working in Bunbury and Kirsty married to Willy Johnston, Ray made the decision to sell the business and move Lyn to Busselton as her medical needs became more demanding
In August 1997, Caltex purchased the fuel distribution and local families Germain and Warren purchased the shop ending a 27 year period of the Gannaway family business in Nyabing.
The Shire of Kent approach Ray to see if the Shire could adopt his business slogan “In the District for The District”, written permission was given by the Gannaway family.
There are a world of stories all centred around the great people and lifestyle we enjoyed for our 27 years in Nyabing. To see the growth of the shop and share laughs and experiences with the 120 great people that worked with us over those years gives us memories that last forever. This is just a “snippet” of those years.
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