The Keema story begins in 1950, with the arrival of John Van Riel and his family from Holland. Trained in the Netherlands as a lawyer, John qualified as an accountant when he arrived in Australia before he decided to open a small workshop in Dutton Park. Attached to a BP service station, the mechanical workshop had a car hoist and did oil changes and repairs.
Although successful, the Dutton Park workshop didn’t have the room to display new cars, which were in demand as the population of post-war Australia grew.
The Keema story begins in 1950, with the arrival of John Van Riel and his family from Holland. Trained in the Netherlands as a lawyer, John qualified as an accountant when he arrived in Australia before he decided to open a small workshop in Dutton Park. Attached to a BP service station, the mechanical workshop had a car hoist and did oil changes and repairs.
Although successful, the Dutton Park workshop didn’t have the room to display new cars, which were in demand as the population of post-war Australia grew.
In the 1960’s, Brisbane’s population continued to grow steadily, and development began to spread from the city outwards. At this stage, Mt Gravatt was an outer southern suburb, surrounded by bushland. A new concept known as the shopping mall was being established to cater to the growing population. In 1963, Keema moved to new premises at 1532 Logan Rd, Mt Gravatt, Brisbane, where it remains today, selling the Nissan, Hyundai, Isuzu Ute brands.
