In the photograph a young Nakis Raftopoulos is arranging the fruit display in his father's (Spiro Raftopoulos) shop which was at 250 Johnson Street in Abbotsford. Many Ithacan Greeks who settled in Melbourne opened businesses as it was difficult for non-British immigrants to secure employment in the early years when Ithacans first started arrive. The business were mostly associated with food vending, either cafes, restaurants, oyster bars and sea food shops, or fruit shops, stalls or barrows. They ventured into the food vending business because it was an area the had skills in. Also some of these business didn't require enormous initial capital outlay and provided a springboard for entrepreneurial Ithacans to progress to larger scale businesses. The ownership of businesses by Ithacans assisted the development of chain migration with Ithacan business owners providing employment to relatives who wished to emigrate to Melbourne. A black and white photograph of a young man in a fruit shop. he is arranging apples in a display behind a counter. The photograph has been reproduced and is mounted on board.

The Majestic Confectionery and Fruit Palace, located at 600 Chapel Street at the corner of Toorak Road and Chapel Street South Yarra was owned by Spiros D. Kallinikos. His sister Chrisoula is pictured outside the shop. It was situated at The family lived there until 1943. Spiro was married to Evriklia (nee Kolaitou) and they had three daughters Nina (Katerini), Kali (Kaliope) and Poppy (Penelope). As well as opening cafes, fruit shops and fruit stalls in the Melbourne's central business district, Ithacans also ran businesses in the suburbs, initially just beyond the CBD in areas such as South Melbourne, South Yarra, Carlton and Richmond. During the 50s and beyond, as newer suburbs grew, many opened businesses beyond the inner suburbs to areas such as Balwyn, North Balwyn, Camberwell, Burwood, Caulfield, Ivanhoe, Kew.A sepia print of a lady standing outside a double fronted shop.south yarra

Bill Florence (Florias) is standing behind the counter of his Quality Lunch Service located at 3 Manchester Lane off Collins Street which he ran from 1937 - 1970. This is an example of the type of businesses, mainly food related, which Ithacan Greeks owned and ran in Melbourne's CBD from the early 1900s through to the early 1970s. They ranged from restaurants, cafes, milk bars, fruit shops and fruit barrows, flower shops, as well as fruit stalls in the Queen Victoria Market. A black and white photograph of a man dressed in a white dust coat standing behind a counter in a small sandwich bar. Behind him are the cash register and various food items and on the wall are printed cards listing the sandwiches and other snacks available. The prices are in the old imperial currency of pounds shillings and pence.

Some Ithacans who settled in Melbourne became retail fruit vendors in the local markets in Melbourne such as the Queen Victoria Market or the South Melbourne, Prahan or Camberwell Markets.A sepia photograph of a lady standing behind a well stocked fruit stall in a market.fruit stalls, ithacan businesses