It was in the year 1910 that Robert and Elizabeth Flett and their family first opened their general store in Bunyip. Situated at 18 Main Street (now Bunyip’s Bendigo Bank), the store became a place where the people of Bunyip could find just about everything they needed.
The shelves were lined with china and glassware, kitchen goods, and everyday essentials.
There were nails and screws, tools and paint. In the earlier days, you could also find bulk goods like wheat, maize, oats, and pollard, along with kerosene and briquettes.
The Flett children grew up at the store, the sound of the bell on the door, and the customers coming and going.
The years rolled on, and by the time the 1960s and early 1970s arrived, the general store was still a familiar part of Main Street.
Some things may have changed over time, but much remained the same — the long wooden counter, the shelves of goods, and behind that counter stood Mr. Colin Flett, taking after his father.
The little boy who had once grown up knowing the brown paper bags of broken biscuits. He now was the man serving the people of Bunyip.
Tall, with greying hair and glasses, and often wearing an apron, he knew his store well — every jar, every tin, every item in its place.
Customers would come and go, and Mr. Flett would be there, ready to help, just as his family had done before him. And so, around 1977, the doors of the old general store quietly closed, marking the end of an erathe time had come for change.
Colin and his wife, Lyla, moved on from Bunyip, leaving behind the store and the life they had known for so many years. they retired to the suburbs, carrying with them a lifetime of memories from Main Street.but that’s not the end of its story.
If you live on Flett Street, or are near 18 Main Street Bunyip, you might feel the family’s vibe. Thank you Mr Colin Flett
#lovealwayshenry♥️