Foschini

History

The first Foschini store opened on Pritchard Street in Johannesburg on 27 November 1925. ^[1]

The business had nine branches by 1927 and listed its clothing company in 1941. ^[1]

Foschini remains a retail brand within the wider TFG portfolio. ^[1]

Founder and builder roles

Rosenthal was the founder. Stanley Lewis entered through a major shareholding and took control in 1958. ^[1]

Key milestones

1. 1924

   George Rosenthal founded Foschini. ^[1]

2. 1925-11-27

   The first store opened in Johannesburg. ^[1]

3. 1927

   The network reached nine branches. ^[1]

4. 1941

   Foschini Dresses listed on the JSE. ^[1]

5. 1958

   Stanley Lewis acquired control. ^[1]

Founded / co-founded by

• George Ivan Rosenthal — American founder of Foschini, the South African fashion retailer from which TFG developed.

Company builders

• Stanley Lewis — Controlling investor and company builder who expanded Foschini into a diversified South African retail group.
• Anthony Thunström — Chief executive of TFG, the listed South African fashion and lifestyle retail group.

Related articles

• How Foschini Became TFG: Rosenthal, Lewis and a Century of Retail
  How George Rosenthal founded Foschini, Stanley Lewis built a diversified retailer, and TFG now separates ownership, board oversight and management.

Related institutions

• TFG — JSE-listed retailer built from the Foschini business founded by George Rosenthal in 1924 and diversified under Stanley Lewis.

Sources

1. The Foschini Group Limited, Integrated Annual Report 2026, 2026-07-30. Original source. Accessed 2026-11-06. ↩