It was originally founded by Henry Cooper Smith in 1918 as City Market initially involved with auctioning grain and product.

The business initially auctioned grain, livestock and general goods, but later began to specialize in new and used furniture and hardware.

Following the company being placed into receivership in 1991, the receivers sold both the North Island division and Noel Leeming Television Limited.

[2] Smiths City was placed into a trading halt on 27 March 2020, two days into New Zealand's COVID-19 lockdown, after it was initially denied permission to operate as an essential business.

[9] The company's Blenheim store, the largest tenant of Marlborough District Council, was given a rent discount during the lockdown.

[15] The new owners closed Smiths City's operations in Auckland, where it had struggled against Australian rival chains like Harvey Norman and Freedom Furniture.