Victorian town attempts to reopen historic century-old general store

Residents of the Victorian town of Guildford have launched a Save Our Store campaign to buy their historic 108-year-old general store, which closed in March.

Described by residents as the town’s hub and “spiritual home” the Guildford general store is currently listed for sale with a $950,000 purchase price.

Closed after the previous owners struggled to run it profitably, the Save Our Store campaign hopes to raise $1 million to buy the business from the consortium that currently owns it.

Inspired by other community asset purchases in regional Victoria, the group aims to form a co-operative, with 200 members of the public each buying a $5000 share.

Speaking to SmartCompany, the Save Our Store committee’s leader, Liz Monty, said 90 people have already pledged to buy shares.

“The general store had such a wonderful vibe,” said Monty, who moved to Guildford seven years ago but has known the town far longer.

“Community means everything to us, we’re really missing it, we’re starved of community at the moment.”

“The store was the place where we formed deep and meaningful connections. It had a little cafe area, takeaway meals, a little bit of everything. It was where the community checked in.”

“The store was really essential to the mental health of the community, allowing older residents to keep their independence, and maintain social connections.”

In 2021 the store was bought by a consortium from outside the area who ran petrol stations and news agencies. The model didn’t work, business dropped off, and in March the owners decided it was more expensive to keep it open.

The Guildford General Store Co-op aims to buy the store, reopen it and keep it operating.

Formed from a committee that currently includes a musician, a chef, and individuals with not-for-profit and finance experience, an elected Board of Directors will oversee the store, reporting back to the shareholders on the financials of the business at the annual general meeting.

“A co-operative is a beautiful working model,” said Monty, “with seven international laws, including a focus on community support and education. We decided to go for a distributing co-op model, which means we can distribute profits as dividends, or return them back into the community”.

Situated 135km from Melbourne, midway between the regional cities of Ballarat and Bendigo, Guildford residents have a track record of keeping their community assets alive.

Previously, the town’s 330 residents successfully campaigned to save their local pub, and to keep their historic red-brick school open.

The general store building dates to 1865, when it opened as the Commercial Hotel. The hotel was converted to the general store in 1916 after a fire destroyed the previous shop venue.

Over the last 48 hours, both the ABC and The Age newspaper have reported on the campaign, and Monty revealed that Channel Nine’s A Current Affair news show will be filing a report this week.

Individuals can buy up to forty shares (or 20% of the total membership) meaning one committed backer with $200,000 could get the community much closer to their goal.

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