 Having spent some time in the Liverpool office his father's shipping business, Reeves emigrated to Victoria, Australia, in approximately 1855 and worked as an accountant and commission agent in Ballarat and Geelong.Reeves later emigrated to Dunedin, New Zealand aboard the "Nelson" in June 1862 and settled at his property Woodville in the North East Valley.Once in Dunedin, Reeves established an accountant and commissions agent in Vogel Street which later became known as Reeves & Co. His businesses included stock broking and a cordial manufacturing plant in Maclaggan Street that was later sold to Lane & Co. His son Harman Jeffares Reeves joined him in the business.