OUR HISTORY
1988
From the boot of a Ford Bronco, 18 year old Nigel Austin makes his first denim jacket sale at the Beckley Market in Geelong.
1991
The first Cotton On store opens in East Geelong followed by a second store in Malop Street. It’s a family affair, with Nigel’s cousins working the shop floor.
1994
We begin our expansion journey, opening our first store in another state – Western Australia.
2004
At a time when Nigel and his friends and family are struggling to find fun, quality kids’ fashion, Cotton On KIDS is born. The brand launches mere months after the idea is first floated.
2006
We jump the Tasman and open our first international doors in Queensgate Shopping Centre, New Zealand. Back home in Australia, the 100th store opens at Knox City.
2007
It’s a year of firsts. A casual chat between leaders on a snow trip results in the launch of Cotton On Body; factorie opens its first stores in New South Wales; and Singapore becomes our second international market. After a donation is made to finish a healthcare centre in the village of Mannya, Uganda, we officially launch the Cotton On Foundation.
2008
With a name inspired by Dorothy’s red slippers, footwear label Rubi is launched. In the same year, the doors open to a Hong Kong Cotton On store.
2009
Quirky gift and stationery destination Typo launches, giving us the chance to engage customers a little differently to before. We introduce our 14 Rules to Trade to guide and govern the sourcing, manufacturing and supply of our products. We open our 500th store and there’s more international expansion as we take on Malaysia and the USA. In true Cotton On Group style, the decision to enter the world’s biggest retail market is made at a cricket match.
2010
Cotton On opens in Dubai, our first location in the United Arab Emirates.
2011
Cotton On opens in South Africa, which will go on to be one of our biggest and fastest growing markets.
2012
The Group hits 1,000 stores, launches in the Philippines and Thailand, and Cotton On KIDS and Typo open in the USA.
2013
Cotton On opens in Indonesia, Oman and Saudi Arabia. As our team reaches 19,000 people, an in-house learning platform is launched, called COG Uni. We acquire iconic youth brand, Supré.
2014
We open headquarters all over the world! Cotton On Group officially launches country offices in South Africa, Asia, USA and Brazil, at the same time as our first Brazilian store opens in São Paulo.
2015
The team in South Africa lead Cotton On’s launch in Namibia, the first time an expansion project is managed from a regional office. We begin our practice of publicly disclosing the Cotton On Group supplier list. This year also marks the official launch of our New Zealand headquarters in Auckland.
2016
Typo becomes the Group’s first UK citizen, launching online to start with and then opening a store in London. Our office in Malaysia is officially opened. The Group becomes one of the first Australian retailers to join the Better Cotton Initiative and announce our goal of 100% sustainable cotton by 2021.
2017
Supre moves from Geelong to Melbourne, with an office opening at Chadstone – Australia’s fashion capital. The Cotton On Foundation pledges R100 million to support child education projects in South Africa. The Group’s seven brands come together on the e-commerce site for the first time, giving our customers one-stop access to all brands in one convenient online destination.
2018
We launch CottonOn&CO. Perks program designed to reward our customers for shopping with us. Our purpose built Avalon Distribution Centre opens to provide an improved customer experience and team members with a world-class working environment. We join Action Collaboration Transformation (ACT) to work collaboratively with fellow signatories towards a goal of achieving living wages for all workers.
2019
The Group enters its 19th region to trade; Vietnam. Cotton On’s inclusive Curve brand is launched; catering for women of all sizes. Our Foundation officially raises an incredible $100 million AUD since it began in 2007 and the Group partners with CARE Australia to empower women in our supply chain.