In 1885 two brothers opened a small drapery on Oxford Street and named it Mark Foy’s. What began as a quiet dream became Sydney’s grandest love affair with elegance: the first Dior show outside Paris, French mannequin parades that stopped traffic, Australasia’s first escalator, in-house couture glowing with Australian light.
Today Mark Foy’s is back; digital, intimate and still obsessed with the same perfection.
1885
Two brothers, Francis and Mark Foy, open a modest drapery on Sydney’s Oxford Street. In tribute to their father, they name it Mark Foy’s, and quietly begin a love affair between Australia and European elegance.
1885 – 1908. From one shop to a city landmark. They import the finest silks and fashions from Paris and London while proudly making their own couture gowns, tailoring, and accessories right here in Sydney.
1908
The Piazza is born; a breathtaking six-storey palace on Liverpool Street, spanning the block bordered by Castlereagh, Elizabeth and Goulburn Streets, and inspired by the grand department stores of Paris. Australasia’s first escalator. A restaurant. A post office. Shopping becomes theatre.
1940s – 1950s. Sydney’s golden age of glamour. Mark Foy’s hosts Balmain, Elsa Schiaparelli, and the first Christian Dior look shown outside Paris. French Mannequin Parades stop traffic. Elizabeth Tweedie Foy, our in-house couturière, blends Parisian chic with Australian sunlight.
1920s – 1960s. Mark Foy's weave their own fabrics at the Target Woollen Mills, launch legendary biannual “Foy’s Fairs” that draw breathless crowds and send beautifully illustrated catalogues to every corner of the country.
1983
The Piazza closes its doors. The marble halls fall silent. But the name, and the dream, never fades.
Today
Mark Foy’s returns, reborn as a digital boutique. The same obsessive curation, the same European masterpieces (and the exquisite pieces we still create ourselves), now delivered to your door in days.
Designer pieces and the best prices; no endless waitlists required. Just the joy of real luxury, finally within reach.
Heritage isn’t something we talk about.
It’s something we live; every collection, every perfectly chosen piece.
