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Ballantynes chief executive Maria O’Halloran has stepped down after leading Christchurch’s last remaining department store for the past 11 years.

O’Halloran’s final day as CEO will be December 23 this year.

During her time as chief executive, O’Halloran helped the store recover from both the Christchurch quakes and the Covid pandemic.

This involved an extensive rebuild and the establishment of two new stores in Invercargill and Auckland.

O’Halloran was also heavily involved in the store’s celebration of 170 years’ service.

Ballantynes chair Julie Bohenn today congratulated O’Halloran for her many achievements as a leader.

“We have stayed relevant to our discerning in-store and online customers – and have kept putting smiles on the faces of Cantabrians with our program of events and activations, including the much-loved Christmas window displays.”

“Retailing is not easy. To succeed, it requires vision, perseverance and an unswerving dedication to finding out what customers want,” she said.

Ballantynes Department Store in central Christchurch has proven to be one of New Zealand's greatest retail success stories. Photo / George Heard

Bohenn said O’Halloran demonstrated all of these attributes.

“The board is confident she has left Ballantynes well set up for the next stage of our evolution,” she said.

Bohenn said the search for her replacement would begin shortly.

“We will begin seeking an outstanding leader and innovator to build on Maria’s achievements,” said Bohenn.

The department store, located on the corner of Cashel and Colombo Sts in central Christchurch, has proven to be one of New Zealand’s greatest retail success stories.

It has survived two World Wars, two pandemics [Covid-19 and influenza], two depressions, two disasters [fire in 1947, earthquake in 2011].

Ballantynes has charged on while many of its counterparts have fallen in recent years, including Wellington’s Kirkaldie and Stains and Auckland’s Smith and Caughey’s – which is downsizing to a single-storey unit in the new year.