15 Iconic Stores Now Out of Business

[@lindaeasley5606]

Dang,I miss Sears .It was the department store of my childhood ( 1970s) I remember the Christmas catalog coming to our house in the mail every fall and my parents going to shop at their brick and mortar for everything from car tires to TV sets ,and washing machines

[@seanswinton6242]

Same here. Making that Christmas list annually was awesome. Realizing Christmas was only once a year, I sold frozen sweets and candy to buy my own toys until Christmas.

[@derealized797]

pepperidge farm remembers

[@jackilynpyzocha662]

I miss Steigers in Eastfield, Holyoke and Downtown Springfield. Johnson's Bookstore, too! I really miss Hickory Farms in these malls in the 1970s/1980s at Christmas time. Wow.

[@haroldwilkes6608]

Where I live now has a Sears but it's mostly a catalog store now. We had a Montgomery Ward too but taps was played for that one too.

[@davidwright4495]

Sears was king.

[@followthecrowstv]

An old man in my town here in KY owns a RadioShack. When they were closing down, he refused. He asked to keep the name for the one location, and he purchases the products to fill the store with. Him, and his wife still work there to this day.

[@nunyabiznez6381]

I used to get the radio shack catalog and then one day it stopped coming. I was upset. I loved that catalog. So I went to Radio Shack and asked for a catalog and they told me they don't do catalogs any more and I should go to their website. Problem was I didn't have a computer and that was before our public library had pubic computers. I just wanted to buy some replacement parts for my stereo that I got there a few years earlier. He simply told me to go on line and order them there. I repeated that I had no access to the internet and asked if he could order them for me and he flatly said "We don't do that here, go on line!" That was the last time I stepped foot in a Radio shack. The arrogance of this and other chains is what killed them. Borders refused to do any customer service at all. I wanted a newspaper from Florida and they carried them but always sold out quickly. I offered to pay in advance for an entire year and I'd just come buy every Friday to pick up the previous Sunday's paper. They told me I'd have to come in every Wednesday to pick up the paper at that time IF they hadn't sold out by then but they could not hold any item regardless of my offer to pay in advance. I was unable to go on Wednesdays due to work. I explained that to them and he told me I should subscribe to the paper. Problem was that newspaper didn't mail out subscriptions out of state so his suggestion was pointless. I have seen this pattern time and again with most of the retailers listed in this video. This is why Amazon is so successful and pretty much destroyed many of these companies. The ones that went out of business before Amazon became a thread would have gone out due to Amazon eventually. I rarely buy things in brick and mortar stores anymore because of Amazon. I got fed up with high prices, low quality, poor selection and rude or non existent sales people.

[@roycethomason3503]

I know where one is its in the back corner of a whirl pool/ picture frame store.

[@pennyfields491]

What town in Ky? Please share, many thanks!!

[@followthecrowstv]

@@pennyfields491 Barbourville.

[@milesdufourny4813]

There's still a Radio Shack up in Windham, Maine.

[@millerscorner2]

When I was a preteen, a hundred years ago or so it seems, my friend and I would go to Woolworth's to sit at the soda fountain and get banana splits. It was an awesome place. I miss places like that.

[@brodriguez11000]

I remember the checkerboard tile floor.

[@nunyabiznez6381]

I've been to most of these places though I hadn't heard of a few of them. I miss Borders, Sears, Circuit City and Radio Shack the most. We also had a lot of regional retail chains in New England that went out of business. We all blamed everything on Walmart but I now realize if Walmart hadn't come along Amazon would still have put most of them out of business. Netflix killed blockbuster and their competition. I didn't really go to blockbuster much. There was a video rental store across from my apartment that was much more convenient. They had a better selection to. But the rental cost was expensive. $4 for 48 hours rental but if you were even a minute late there was a $5 per day late fee. They only gave a slight discount for renting 4 videos at a time ($1 off to make it $15 to rent 4) and they always used high pressure sales tactics to get you to buy a bag of popcorn for $7, a 2 liter bottle of Coke (their only flavor) for $5 and candy at $4 per package. For some reason they thought they could charge as much as movie theaters when there was a grocery store down the street that sold all that for less than half the price. So I asked the manager about when he would start getting DVD's in instead of VHS and he said that he wasn't going to be getting them because nobody had DVD players and the DVD's would cost $100 each to buy and it was a fad like laser disks and nobody would want them in a year or two when they realized that VHS were vastly superior. Two weeks later I was in line at Walmart to buy my first DVD player for $39 at their Black Friday sale and inside was a coupon for Netflix disc rentals by mail and I think it was something like $10 a month and I could keep four discs out at a time without any late fees and so I tried it out and by January that video store had a going out of business sign in front. Obviously I was not the only one. One business after another dropped because the management was too stupid and too arrogant to see the writing on the wall in time to make changes needed to stay in business.

[@candicebreedlovecheney3634]

Come to the store in Bakersfield! It is an antique store but still has an operating lunch counter.

[@billolsen4360]

@@candicebreedlovecheney3634 Good to hear! Downtown?

[@mrs.dr.spencerreid3992]

This video almost made me cry. Woolworth’s store was MY FAVORITE place to go when I was a child (I’m 60 now). ToysRUs was then a favorite place for my children to go (they’re 24 and 20 now). I actually remember 90% of these stores‼️❤️. Memories to take to my grave.

[@iTeerRex]

Still must have been a nice trip down the memory lane.

[@mrs.dr.spencerreid3992]

@@iTeerRex ~ Yes and no. Melancholy, sad and pensive. Mixed emotions 😳

[@ct_cartoonist53]

Same here. I remember before "Toys R Us" there was a large retail toy store called "ChildWorld" which had a Panda bear for a mascot. 🐼

[@mrs.dr.spencerreid3992]

@@ct_cartoonist53 ~ Where was that may I ask?

[@ct_cartoonist53]

@@mrs.dr.spencerreid3992 - I believe the corporate HQ was in Massachusetts. In it's peak, they had over 180 stores in the US, mostly on the east coast with a few stores in the mid US.

[@bongwelll]

To grow up in the 80’s was to see the last dying embers of the American dream. Now we live in a dystopian novel ruled by our corporate overlords. Fuck this.

[@patriciabarkley735]

Amen!

[@ignazs.5816]

I can agree to that. I only remember glimpses of this long gone era during the 90s with zombie stores scattered around in Los Angeles : Woolworth, Newberry, Treasure Hunt.

[@golden8972]

Agreed 100%!

[@victornice858]

Yes Ben, if only it could. The monster is digital in presence

[@dkleine9168]

Don’t shop via the internet. And move to Afghanistan to compare shopping. If you don’t like it in America, MOVE!

[@msn64man1]

Rest In Peace to all those stores that gave us memories and joy you will be missed

[@derealized797]

pepperidge farm remembers

[@mimistans7715]

I am 67 and the Sears in Louisville, Kentucky used to have a Christmas Tree and Santa set up every Christmas in their basement. I was always way too afraid to talk to Santa but they had an awesome Train set up that I loved watching.

[@VygerST]

Sears also had catalog outlet stores. For small towns those were super amazing. You could could go there and they had every catalog , all the speciality ones as well as the big ones that were all up to date.. you could order Anything from any of the catalogs and it would get delivered to the outlet for free. I ordered all the appliances for our kitchen that way. New stove and fridge, washer and dryer, water heaters and water conditioner, the mainSears store was 300 miles away but with that catalog outlet it was just a few miles. It had a big impact on our town when it closed those outlet stores.

[@michigandon]

I remember those. I called em "Baby Sears" when I was a little kid. Last one I remember seeing was in Louisburg, NC. And I think it was in operation until just a few years ago.

[@MikeBrown-ii3pt]

We had a catalog store here until the early 90s. I remember going there to make many pickups.

[@sandrajohnson2489]

I loved Woolworth's stores. They had so much stuff at a good price. I purchased my very first 45 record in one of those stores. Too bad they closed.

[@valeriejean6507]

I loved TG and Y. It was a true dime store.

[@tolfan4438]

I got a Chinese sniper rifle a parakeet and a tuna melt

[@kathygoheen4626]

Our store had a diner that I loved to go to, 1960's💜🇺🇲

[@valeriejean6507]

@@kathygoheen4626 we used to have a local drug store with a soda fountain. Those nickel cherry 🍒cokes were really good.

[@audreyramey9196]

It's where my first record player came from.

[@Euorgos]

Does anyone remember W.T.Grants? Seems like most have forgotten this once huge national department store that bit the dust in the mid 1970's.

[@edlightman6947]

there was a w.t. grants in pittsburgh pa . and northen lights shopping center in baden pa.

[@kaddyd1815]

Yes! And JM Fields and Bradlees

[@derealized797]

pepperidge farm remembers

[@jayl8034]

Yeah, I remember W.T. Grants. .Funny, the things you remember.For me, It was that they had wooden plank floors and it was a BIG store! Certain parts of the floor would "squeak" as you walked them. I used to drop to one knee and SPY on the ppl downstairs by peering through the gaps in the planks. They used to put tar between the planks to stop that squeak, but the shopping cart wheels would wear it away.

[@bradleygood6871]

We had one here in Des Moines, Iowa. I think it closed in 1975 when I was very young.

[@howardcitizen2471]

Sears never realized that their catalogue was the pre-internet Amazon.

[@michaelrief4424]

Absolutely. Sears had ALL the huge warehouses in place around the country and a Catalog that had just about everything in it. What they Didn’t have was forward minded Management that were up for the work it was going to take to move slowly away from brick & mortar stores towards the future internet market. I actually remodeled my Wife’s kitchen with Sears knocked down self-assembly kitchen cabinets that, get this, were made of Birch Hard Wood. When I was finally done my wife literally cried and she made me whatever I wanted to eat for Years.

[@bjenkins803]

Yep. They could have been what Amazon is now but the owners got greedy.

[@ijustawannaprivicie8031]

On a surface level that might appear so. But Amazon started from the ground up and redid everything. Imagine constructing a new building that could have all the newest features like central air, double reinforced concrete slabs, liquid crystal windows to regulate sunlight, etc. Right next to it is a building that's a hundred years old with none of those newer features, accumulated debts due to building repairs, and had become infested with bugs and rodents. The public from the outside sees the older building and laments how it was there first and should have been able to capture all of the tenants that the new building did, but just sits there half empty and slowly wasting away. Sears was stuck with a lot of infrastructure, financial, and managerial issues that prevented it from becoming Amazon.

[@bjenkins803]

@@ijustawannaprivicie8031 True. Looking forward to the next Amazon type of company with new features like beaming stuff to your living room or no longer ordering by touching a device and you just think about what you want lol. Sears really did have a great thing going. Sears Christmas wish book is something kids today will never get to experience. Always the best times when that catalog vame in the mail. Me and my sisters would argue over whose turn it was to look through it. Of course we would never really get much from it either lol.

[@howardcitizen2471]

@@ijustawannaprivicie8031 Au contraire: Sears already had all the infrastructure in place that Amazon had to build over 20 years. All Sears needed to do was put their catalogue online. Thousands of existing Sears stores nationwide could have served as pickup and distribution centers. Many of the stores would have still closed as online shopping diminished the need for brick and mortar stores, but Sears would still be one of the leading retailers and Amazon would be known just as a river in South America.

[@ingridfong-daley5899]

I worked for Blockbuster Video for 13 years, and it was the single most fun job you could have. What tanked us was a fallout with either Paramount or Universal, where we couldn't get titles from the studio anymore, and at the same time, mail-order Netflix had selection we could not match. Blockbuster really believed the 'hand-held satisfaction' factor would never go out of style, and they were SEVERELY mistaken. I worked in the Hoboken NJ store in 2007 when we had a literal million-dollar renovation--only to shut down less than a year later. I still have nostalgia pangs, knowing my kids will never have such an awesome, easy job where making use of your esoteric film knowledge was a selling point/appreciated skill set. They were actually a great company to work for. Rest in peace BBV #22035 (Laplace, LA).

[@ThomasBoyce5000]

Ironic how so many people want Blockbuster to come back, which gives credibility to the adage "you don't know what you've got until it's gone". Sometimes if I get lost in thought, I can still psychosomatically smell the inside of a Blockbuster and how easily they routed other rental stores because of how admittedly reasonable Blockbuster's prices were. Their membership was, if I'm remembering correctly, the only thing that theoretically COULD be a bit pricey, but compared to other places, you saved money in the long run.

[@PJAvenger]

I probably miss Sears the most. Still have my Kenmore fridge :) and I detest Wal-Mart, they're eyesores with zero customer service

[@Primalxbeast]

Literally zero. Last time I went to one of their grocery stores, they only had self checkout lanes open.

[@maryellenyarusso7029]

Sears in recent years went downhill having to search all over for an open register and a person behind the register said nothing and walked away

[@jblyon2]

There's so much that came from Sears when I was growing up. Even now there's a ton of things in my parents' house from Sears. A number of appliances and nearly all my Dad's tools were Sears.

[@billolsen4360]

You mean that generic modern architecture and those people stocking Sprawlmart shelves who try to avoid eye contact with customers because they know you're going to ask where an item is?

[@michaelrief4424]

Sears & Roebuck was one of our families favorite stores. Whenever we went there my Mom & Sister took off together and headed for the clothing department. My Dad and Me headed for the Tools and Hardware department. Practically all my tools were from Sears. Shopping online has its advantages but seeing and holding something or trying on clothes before you buy them has a distinct advantage also.

[@sumatralex250]

It's the true end of an era with full of findings and wonders sustained by merchandise businesses. I missed good old days, watching this.

[@jackilynpyzocha662]

Service Merchandise!

[@allanr6132]

Service Merchandise was a fun store. Looking at everything behind glass then get on their computers to order your stuff and finally waiting for your name to be called so you could watch it roll out of tge backroom on a conveyor. Kind of archaic by todays standards but lots of fun.

[@davidwright4495]

Same here.

[@josephcontreras8930]

The price of online technology. Soon there will be no brick and mortar stores. Sad

[@ct_cartoonist53]

They need to make a PART 2 on this subject. I remember these stores plus many others that disappeared over time: Orange Julius, G. Fox, Ames, Zayre, Caldor's, Sage Allen, Grant's Department store, Levitz Furniture ...

[@contrarian8870]

I think there's still an Orange Julius in my mall? Or am I mistaken?

[@ct_cartoonist53]

@@contrarian8870 - What State? What's the name of the Mall?

[@patriciajankowski1]

Incredible Universe

[@MsCnote1984]

Orange Julius is now I'm some Dairy Queen locations.

[@kendallcaminiti-hess2243]

How about Payless Shoes, and T G&Y?

[@audreyramey9196]

I miss the Christmas catologs. It was a way for all kids to make their wish lists.

[@NipkowDisk]

Indeed. One year I just put the catalog numbers on my wish list... that did not go over too well :)

[@davidgoodman6924]

I miss those to, but you can still look through them on wishbook web.

[@audreyramey9196]

@@davidgoodman6924 , lol if I knew how. I still can't work my phone right. I don't google, tweet or surf. I'm what's known as a non-tec person. I miss the days when all phones worked the same and ya just changed the chanel. Ya know, the simple life.

[@davidgoodman6924]

@@audreyramey9196 Agree 100%. I've looked through the catalogs online and they do remind you of the simple life. 👍

[@DwayneETowns]

Me to

[@joshuarisker5525]

I miss block buster I remember being a kid an every Friday we would go pick up 3 movies an Fri sat and sun we would have family movie nights...them were the good ol days

[@josephcontreras8930]

I miss video stores in general though we had cable TV come in town it still was nice to choose and pick what you wanted to watch instead of what the movie channels choose for you.

[@davidlafleche1142]

I remember the first video rental store in my hometown opened in 1983. I told my mother she could rent video taped movies; she didn't believe me. The place was called "Captain Video," but the store's owner was told that name was already taken. It was renamed Major Video, and was a popular place to go back in the 80s. But, you must admit, the video rental industry was doomed to obsolescence from the start. Entrepreneurs had to come up with a better way to rent movies, and they did.

[@sharonaustin6944]

My dad was transferred a lot when I was a kid, but wherever we moved there was an A&P. My mom always got the store manager to stock Luzianne coffee with chicory.

[@HT-zx8dn]

I renovated my kitchen and bought all 4 appliances from Sears, That was 5 years ago. I was feeling even then business was not good so I wanted to help. Sorry to see that Sears is gone. I liked Kmart as well. Dislike wallmart.

[@michigandon]

Go to the KZbin channel "artismac" and watch "The Saga of The Sears Water Heater" and you'll understand why Sears ended up the way they did.

[@ignazs.5816]

I loved Kmart and Sears. I still go the stores left in Southern California once in a while.

[@patriciabarkley735]

I loved KMart. Their clothing was higher quality than Walmart. I actually loved all their merchandise. I shop at Walmart, but only because it is convenient and quick to get in and out. Everything is in one building.

[@cynterslave]

I love how the pic used for the 1st Blockbuster says “No Late Fees” on the window. It seemed like assessing late fees was the only way Blockbuster made any money! They were ridiculous!

[@sebastianabsolution655]

please be kind an rewind. blockbuster.😂😂😂

[@josephcontreras8930]

Was this the one that captain marvel crashed into in the movie???

[@rogerbeam3426]

@ cyntersl... , Thier policy of walk-ins had priority on movies that other customers had on reserve was a crock , I had reserved a movie waited 4-5 days got the call it was in got there too pick it up somebody had walked in n got it .

[@gregnixon1296]

Blockbuster got greedy and took delight in screwing customers.

[@lorrieannesilvey474]

I miss Sears, Book Stores and BlockBuster. I still have the vacuum cleaner I bought at Sears......the Kenmore canister vac. Great machine.

[@kendallcaminiti-hess2243]

I miss the catalogs that Sears had including the giant Wish Book that I would get every year and mark what I wanted for Christmas in...

[@kenh9681]

Nothing beat Kenmore merchandise back in the day. I still have my Sears Kenmore vacuum also. It was expensive when I bought it back in 2004 but it still works like the day I bought it.

[@josephcontreras8930]

My mom still uses a rolling canister vacuum from Monty wards she got in 88 along with a hot air popcorn pumper she got there. And my aunt still brews coffee in a perculator coffee pot from wards. Good stores good products.

[@jbeach1964]

This video made me so sad. So many iconic brands that had their time and place in American and Worldwide retail history. Each store mentioned brought back so many memories. It is amazing how much the internet and companies like Amazon and Netflix have changed the retail landscape forever. Makes you wonder what the next generation of retail will look like in the future. Thanks for creating this video.

[@RedBoneCoonHound47]

The Sear's Wish Book at Christmas with all the toys was the best.

[@patriciabarkley735]

I always loved catalogs! My daughter and 5 year old granddaughter does too. They were great!

[@valeriejean6507]

I always looked at the dolls first.

[@chaosdemonwolf1]

@@valeriejean6507 I checked out the train sets.

[@Abacab965]

Sears auto centers were such rip off artist ! I worked for them and seen crooked repairs and overcharging for service's daily , management hated me for calling out the rip offs of customers and they eventually terminated me for it

[@bryn80524]

I would perfect my Xmas wish list by starting it in January so by the time Xmas hit, I had rewritten the catalog with everything in it on my list. Good times in the mid/late 80’s.

[@robertmills2900]

You were very kind to the corporate vultures that destroyed Sears and Toys r Us from the inside.

[@colincampbell767]

Sears was doomed the moment they decided not to put their product catalog online.

[@charliemiller8353]

I miss Radio Shack greatly. Radio Shack stocked many items no one else carried.

[@chaosdemonwolf1]

RadioShack was called Tandy Electronics here in the UK

[@CinnamonDelight-xb8pl]

I agree about RadioShack

[@CinnamonDelight-xb8pl]

I agree 👍.

[@elultimo102]

@John Wright Show Low, AZ has a Radio Shack.

[@davidwright4495]

Radio Shack was a technology store. If they were still around they would have some crazy gadgets from 2025 and beyond.

[@PanamaMe]

I grew up with a lot of these stores. It’s hard to see them gone now.

[@MrSmoot]

Y’all want to join the gravy train search Dpls Wsrc Hpil Thank me ladder at the top. Let’s gooo.

[@barrettgoodson8125]

Toy r us is coming back

[@PanamaMe]

Does anyone remember Newberry’s? Was it only on the west coast? As a kid, that store was a wonder. Loved it!

[@shawnoconnor4633]

Toys R Us still exists in Canada thoo… like was in one last week for my nephews bday gift.

[@sandrasennhauser1776]

@@barrettgoodson8125 not for you guys in the States. It’s only here in Canada now.

[@fernandobarajas3157]

I remember Montgomery Ward, Builders Square K-Mart and not to be forgotten Gemco. I remember Gemco's were a grocery store/department store combo like Walmart stores of today...

[@suesolorzano1018]

Also newberrys

[@bryanbrett8943]

I used to work at gemco! Great place

[@derealized797]

pepperidge farm remembers

[@jackilynpyzocha662]

What about "Camelot" stores?

[@juliadawnyel3648]

Worked at Kmart then Walmart going to on line

[@michaelrief4424]

I really missed Circuit City. I’ve bought most of my major appliances there. Sadly when they were nearing the end I bought a new Car CD/Radio from my local store and I was their last installation customer in the Shop.

[@ludeguy]

I was an installer at the circuit city in Boise Idaho and was there for ten years and was there the day they closed… still a bit sad. 😢 at least I still get to work on cars but still not the same.

[@conniecarroll7222]

I bought my first home cd player at circuit city back in the late 1980s never had a problem with it, only recently had to get rid of it due to no room in new house I loved that player. Really regret letting it go.

[@caroleroseburgh1344]

I really miss these places. Everyone are not crazy about the internet AND Amazon.🤷🏽 I love going to the store and being hand's on with what I want to purchase.

[@brodriguez11000]

Problem is some did their hands on at the store and bought online.

[@cliffpadilla5871]

Me, too.

[@janestaton5626]

same I prefer to shop in person

[@patriciabarkley735]

Part of the fun and enjoyment is shopping hands on. I miss these stores.

[@dittohead7044]

And returns can be a nightmare

[@farmerdave7965]

The Sears catalog offered Acme anvils. I'm still chuckling about that.

[@Tool-Meister]

Where do you think Wiley Coyote ordered all his Acme stuff?

[@conniecarroll7222]

Don't recall the anvils but we loved the mailman when he brought a new catalog. I remember in the late 1970s when the men's underwear section caused a stir. Seems someone was bad in the photography department, you could see a few of men's family jewels. That was a hoot.

[@wturner777]

@@Tool-Meister His name is "Wile E." Coyote, not "Wiley".

[@jimpatterson3286]

@@Tool-Meister That's where I got my portable hole for my porch 🤣

[@jimcook2715]

We're they in the Christmas catalogue?

[@kensbackshop6399]

Sears,,,woolworths,,radio shack,,,toys r us,,i really miss them

[@theresa2892]

I remember my grandma would give my brother and I different color pens to circle the things we wanted in the Sears catalog. It kept us busy for hours . 😊

[@CommodoreFloopjack78]

I really miss Border's. I could spend hours there just drinking coffee and browsing.

[@hyacinthlynch843]

Likewise. That place was great.

[@alparker2616]

The ebooks can’t compare to the feel and smell of a book

[@slythmoon]

Same

[@videomaniac108]

Kids weren't the only ones to marvel at the selection of toys at those Toys "R" Us stores.

[@merriemisfit8406]

I called it "Toys R ME". 🙃

[@stevenjohnson7068]

That Woolworth's store they kept showing on K St. is located in Bakersfield, CA. They're still open as an antique store with a fully operating lunch counter with good food.

[@ravenopenheart2649]

The truth is…that if you remember all these stores as well as I do…then you have gone the way of these stores just as much as me. The world I grew up in changed, the people changed. And I have to say…I liked it a hell of a lot better back then than I do now. America was strong and productive…now…it’s embarrassing.

[@haroldwilkes6608]

I'm 78, agree completely. But you can't go home again...I've tried, it's not home anymore.

[@ravenopenheart2649]

@@haroldwilkes6608 Harold. You nailed it…you can’t go home. I was just telling my girlfriend…they retired all the ships I served on…they retired the planes I flew in as aircrew…and they no longer wear the dungarees I wore since boot camp. With my ships turned into scrap metal, my favorite stores forgotten and taken over by online shopping….and beautiful women referencing me as Grandpa….it just feels like it went so fast. Nice to meet you. Raven

[@haroldwilkes6608]

@@ravenopenheart2649 Two of the Air Force bases I served on are closed too. But the B-57 and C-130 are still around so there's hope. And dungarees? I haven't heard that since I wore them as a kid. Thanks for the memory.

[@munkustrap2]

You both aren't alone. I may be a youngster of...wait, let me do the math...58 but so many of the things I enjoyed are gone. I should've seen it coming when they closed Weymouth Air Base (Massachusetts) when I was still a wee lass in my 20's. Don't get me wrong, I like shopping online but I miss having more than 2 choices of where to buy large appliances and having more than Walmart to buy affordable things when I go out. Off topic but I also hate having to make sure with my daughters what I'm saying is politically correct because I don't mean offense by it, it's just how I grew up talking.

[@ameliarosetravel]

We still have a Sears near us and its been doing ok. I went to Sears all the time with my mom to get clothes, shoes and even sometime toys and much more. It’s really so sad how all these stores that really were so popular came coming down. I like Amazon but it really did take a lot of these stores down and it can be nice to get stuff online but it really has made so many people lazy. Like really you can buy a car on your couch. Just crazy how the times have changed. I would of loved to live in the 80s or 90s.

[@davidlafleche1142]

Yes, but back then, people yearned for the 40s and 50s.

[@scposter1]

Robert Sears was a depot agent for ( I believe ) the railroad in North Redwood Minnesota there. In his line of work he came across some unclaimed pocket watches. Thats how Sears Roebuck was started.

[@antoniodane1]

here are some more... Zody's, Fedco, Gemco, TH Mandy's, Montgomery Wards, Thom McCanns, Robinson May

[@jimcook2715]

Venture, zayres, Goldblatts, and korvettes in Chicago

[@derealized797]

G. Fox if you lived in Connecticut way back

[@laustcawz2089]

I remember when it was "Robinson's" & "May Co.".

[@josephdelatorre3751]

I thought for sure Montgomery Ward's would be on that list. Does anybody remember that store?

[@haroldwilkes6608]

Monkey Wards, who can forget...they couldn't compete with Sears though, even their catalogues were smaller.

[@Mike_HuntizWet]

Of course

[@harleypiper]

I can remember my late Grandmother taking me into Woolworths so she can buy her new sewing kits and garments etc. then came the treat of the afternoon, the ice cream parlor, located inside the store, where my sweet tooth was filled with the favorite delight of a shared banana split.

[@derealized797]

pepperidge farm remembers

[@elultimo102]

And you didn't go broke buying a banana split. Now they price them as if they were Starbucks---or maybe the living standard was a lot higher back then.

[@joeyformasano5499]

Who remembers boster brown shoes 👞 in the 60's and when they had the metal plate shoes 🤣🤣🤣🤣 dam im getting old

[@soundslikebstome]

Wrong. It's not we're getting old, we are old. Buster Brown...went to them regularly as a kid.

[@yabbadabba1975]

Everybody wore leather shoes to school. To wear "gym shoes" got you sent home. You had to polish them, too. Public school, Virginia 1965.

[@miltmarhoffer729]

Here's buster brown, he lives on a shoe, here's his dog tiger he lives in there too. Yup. I remember

[@derealized797]

pepperidge farm remembers

[@jackilynpyzocha662]

Eastfield Mall, Springfield, MA!

[@TonyWilliams27]

I think JCPenney’s is next soon! They’ve very little hands of customers currently go shopping inside the stores! R.I.P. JCPenney’s!

[@louiszepeda9254]

true

[@Kimrbr549]

They closed the few near me here in Virginia 🙁

[@josecontreras2997]

@@Kimrbr549 2 stores in Stanton and Charlottesville No more.

[@Kimrbr549]

@@josecontreras2997 Harrisonburg Mall still has their JCPenney...hopefully it can stay open.

[@davidsquires154]

I live in the Detroit, Michigan area and J.C.Penney had closing stores statewide in and around the Detroit area.

[@jasonsgandurra7054]

I really miss Tower Record's and Boarder's book store but I'm surprised Barns and Noble hasn't gone out of business yet

[@conniecarroll7222]

B&N has managed to keep afloat for years but they've had troubles. I been reading about it in papers. Switch board members and managers a few times. My main problem with them and yes, I do try to support them since they are local but most of the time they don't carry what I'm looking for. Have gone to their information desk searching for either book, series or a magazine and after looking through the computer they tell me they don't carry that publisher. I ask if they can order or special order because I don't want to have to go through Amazon I'd rather give my money to them but I'm told no. That's one of the reasons why they are having problems the other and Amazon does this also is they both push strongly Kindle. I can't read ebooks.

[@wturner777]

The "Barnes" and Noble in my area went out of business unfortunately.

[@fixinggrace]

As of February 2021 they were less than 30 Sears stores left. They were in Lansing Michigan right up until 2019 when they closed. The problem is they sold a bunch of crap nobody wanted, and their service towards the end was terrible. Their auto center is now being used as a Covid testing site for one of the local hospitals

[@deona267]

I miss Woolworth and Newberry such great stores , great deals.

[@PanamaMe]

Newberry’s! I just commented about that store! I loved that place as a kid. Everything a kid could want and shouldn’t have too. 😂

[@yevercase3339]

just in: "editing error at the end of the video"

[@raystrong6712]

Newberry's great hang out place for people watching while you slurp a shake as a teen.

[@marcushull12]

The same people who say " I buy it off line it`s cheaper , shops are a rip off " are the same people who moan about the empty city centre and boarded up shops . i used to love going into the city centre and catching up with mates , having a coffee and doing some shopping , now due to social media everyone knows everything you have done hour by hour , so here would be nothing to talk about if you did ever meet face to face .

[@jackilynpyzocha662]

I miss malls, the stores, the food and the fun! I do like online shopping, each has their benefits.

[@conniecarroll7222]

@@jackilynpyzocha662 They are still there but they're not the same if you know what I mean. Most have been changed to strip malls that you can see as you drive by. The last true mall that I saw was several years ago when I lived in Austin, Texas. Forget name of if nut it was 2 or 3 floors now that's a mall.

[@onemercilessming1342]

Ah yes...Sears. It took my parents YEARS to pay off their revolving charge. When I was stationed at GLAKES, there was a small mall just off the main base. In it was a Sears store. Remembering my parents'predicament, I have the store a wide berth. Then I came back to my room after Navy classes, I found a bill...from Sears. I went to the store and spoke to their accounts clerk. She told me in order to correct the error, I had to give her a Sears account number. I told her I didn't have a Sears account. She said there was nothing she could do unless I gave her a Sears account number. So, I tore up the bill, shoved the pieces at her and said, "I don't have never had and don't want a Sears account. Figure it out." and left. Small wonder they went out of business.

[@johnbirch7343]

I miss most of these, but one store I liked that is no more is Heath Company, the maker of Heathkits.

[@haroldwilkes6608]

Yes, yes, yes, great radios and other goodies.

[@newenglandlight8724]

Oh, my dad made those all the time. He made me a transistor radio when I was a teenager and I had it for years. My friends and I would walk endlessly around the block in Chicago with our radios in the 60's. Good times!

[@DailyInspirations1978]

I worked as a customer service for SEARS where we offer schedule of repair for their appliance, as well as offering extension of warranty. SEARS is closed to my heart.

[@franknew9001]

Of the 15 stores mentioned in this video, Sears is the one that I miss the most. All of the major appliances in my house are Kenmore from Sears. Sadly, the Sears at the White Oak shopping center in Silver Spring, Maryland that I always shopped at, closed in February 2021.

[@matthewkeefe1377]

I was expecting to see Service Merchandise on this list

[@bonnieharris8112]

I miss Borders book store. There was one in the River Park Shopping Center. I also miss Woolworth's, they were on the Fulton Mall, and in Fashion Fair Mall here in Fresno.

[@mikegehre570]

Like Gottschalks and Weinstocks

[@bonnieharris8112]

@@mikegehre570 I worked at Weinstocks in 1974 as a gift wrapper. It was for the Christmas season. I loved Gottchalks. I shopped in their discount store in Manchester Mall. I miss both those stores too!

[@haroldwilkes6608]

The only book store in my town closed last year, sad but they couldn't compete.

[@markmh835]

I've shopped at 10 of these 15 famous brand name retailers. So sad to see them all out of business. At their heights, you had excellent selection, good prices, and outstanding service by knowledgeable staff. These stores provided entry level employment to millions of people. I guess now, people will have to be satisfied with listing on their resumes that they worked in an Amazon warehouse. For that and so many other reasons, I will never "shop" online with Amazon -- or at a Wal-Mart either. They could easily do a Parts 2, 3, and 4 of this, covering other famous now-gone brands like Montgomery Wards, Gimbels, Eatons (in Canada), and all the various brand names that Macy's swallowed up -- like Marshal Fields. And restaurants too. Such a loss.

[@bonnieharris8112]

I hate Walmart. I'm not happy with Target either. Target helped put Gottchalks Department Stores out of business, the creeps!

[@wturner777]

I'm from a small Florida town and most of the stores on the list I've never heard of. We've never had a Blockbuster, but we had Movie Gallery, which was their direct competitor, and a locally owned video store.

[@haroldwilkes6608]

Our Family Video closed during the virus scare...which seems odd but there's Netflix i guess.

[@lovepaws9771]

My favorite that I miss was Fargo’s pizza. They would show black and white comedy type movies in the back room. Their pizza was awesome.

[@gentillydanny]

Robert Hall's, Spiegel's, W.T. Grant, Thom Mc An, Baker's Shoes, etc.

[@billykuan]

When a hedge fund buys your retailer it's only a matter of time before all assets are stripped and you are out of business.

[@ACGreyhound04]

I remember being so excited when my mom would take me to Toys R Us as a kid. In 1995, my friend and I had an impromptu laser tag battle inside my local store, and the employees didn’t even mind!

[@laurice8056]

Very interesting video. But what about Motorola, Kmart, Marshall Field’s and Payless shoes? A follow up video with 15 more businesses would be great. Thanks for sharing.

[@josephcontreras8930]

Payless drug stores were great too before rite aid got them. I got my first boombox there in early 80s and grab bricks of cassette tapes and later video tapes for recording. And that smell of peat moss or lawn fertilizer will always be in my memory.

[@Hero4Hire4]

I live in a small town that still managed to have most of the stores on this list. Now they're all gone; along with the local mom & pop shops. All we have left is Walmart, Home Depot, Kroger and a few others not worth mentioning. 😩🤢🤮

[@michaelrief4424]

The exact same thing has happened in most urban shopping areas in small to medium sized towns. Walmart comes in and they literally run the small independent stores out of business. It’s really sad because back in the old days when we walked into those small stores They Knew Your Name and they waited on you like you were Royalty. Try that at Walmart.

[@micheledavidswife4336]

😭

[@Primalxbeast]

@@michaelrief4424 Walmart grocery stores don't even have cashiers after 8PM anymore. I don't normally go there and when I went there, I couldn't believe that they only had self checkout lanes open. Sheesh, talk about lack of customer service.

[@michaelrief4424]

@@Primalxbeast Walmart is not what I consider shopping. It’s more like a mad house of people buying crap they don’t need and buying way too much food and mostly food that’s not good for you. I haven’t been in a Walmart in 30 years. I used to go there back when Sam Walton was in charge but now it’s an outlet for Made in China. Not for me.

[@edlightman6947]

i heard rumours that amazon wants to open retail stores

[@ameliarosetravel]

This is just so sad. Amazon really took almost all of these store down like a bomb.

[@wturner777]

You got that right, especially when customer service is so bad in some stores, I don't want to give names (Walmart 🤣🤣).

[@hyacinthlynch843]

It is sad. But as my father used to say, "You snooze, you lose."

[@davidlafleche1142]

Not entirely. Many businesses failed simply because of mismanagement. Sears had been way ahead of Amazon, but they dropped the ball.

[@hyacinthlynch843]

@@davidlafleche1142 Exactly. If Sears had maintained their catalog and put it online, they would've had a chance.

[@ramonlaguer9971]

Thanks for this documentary, I thank God that I got a chance to experience these great American stores, they were truly the best in there time!👁👍🤔😉

[@laustcawz2089]

Toys R Us is supposedly coming back via Macy's. There's a documentary about Tower Records-- "All Things Must Pass". The company is not entirely defunct, at least not by name or logo. It's still very visible in Japan & is apparently making an on-line comeback as well. Nothing is mentioned here about the link between Sears & K-Mart. Both businesses seem to be on their last legs. A great memento of Fotomat is an unforgettable scene in the classic 1993 film "Short Cuts".

[@Obrut00]

I was at Macy's in Mall of America and yes its there. But it just appears to be the toys department for them.

[@ingridfong-daley5899]

OMG I grew up in the boonies in Louisiana, and Circuit City was the one place that my brother, my dad and I could all agree on wanting to go to every single time we 'went into town'. My mom always pouted and waited in the parking lot, sighing viscerally... but in the early home computing and home theatre days, it was where everything you wanted to buy lived.

[@merriemisfit8406]

Did you catch the French Quarter A&P at 20:15? I was having a little snack lunch with some friends and their beautiful baby girl alongside Jackson Square one hot summer day, when all of a sudden: DIAPER EMERGENCY!!!!! "Daddy" immediately got up and made a fast run over to the A&P.

[@ingridfong-daley5899]

@@merriemisfit8406 I DID see that--I mentioned it in a separate comment but yes... a true slice of home :) Laissez-les bon temps rouler!

[@tamaraschmidt7231]

Sears actually had a couple of pages of horse items. I received my first English saddle for my birthday from them. Great memories.🐎🐴

[@jimcook2715]

Many of there problems start with management taking on debt to expand to quickly. For me personally it just hasn't felt like Christmas for over a decade. All the dead malls towns hardly decorate, high end stores gone etc

[@haroldwilkes6608]

Yep, CompuAdd stores is probably a great example of too much too soon. They competed against themselves too.

[@SoundsOfSushi]

I worked to the end at Circuit City. Upper management’s poor decisions and the sluggish economy was too much of a hurdle to get through.

[@jeffjankiewicz5100]

I remember going to Woolworths with my Mom as a kid, had lunch at their luncheonette. Online shopping and Amazon killed retail. Sears, A&P, Radio Shack, RIP

[@hifijohn]

Imagine, sears at one time was so big they built the tallest building in the world.

[@jimcook2715]

My hometown of Kankakee Illinois built every piece of furniture and every appliance sold at Sears! 2 Roper appliance factory's and a huge kroehler furniture factory. Employed thousands of people through generations. All good middle class jobs! All destroyed in the mideighties. The same people complaining about unions then are complaining about China today

[@ingridfong-daley5899]

K sorry I'm commenting again but that A&P photo from New Orleans on St. Peter Street hit me in the feels. Except we called it 'the A&P' because that's what we do to language in Louisiana.

[@1slyboy]

“pillaging by pirates” and “Wall Street greed” has some responsibility

[@TonyWilliams27]

The Wall Street Boys has somewhat cause these iconic businesses to file for bankruptcy and shut down?

[@Sovereign_Citizen_LEO]

It's always the same cause: Zionist International Central Bankers causing Wars, Depressions, Recessions, and Pandemics, literally.

[@catman8670]

You simply don’t know what you’re talking about 🤦🏼

[@3frenchhens818]

I miss Woolworth's, especially the lunch counter where you could get the most wonderful Hot Turkey Sandwich imaginable. For those who don't remember, this was a slice of bread topped with slices of turkey and mashed potatoes on the side -- all swimming in turkey gravy.

[@josephcontreras8930]

You're making me hungry. My grandma always took me to penny's lunch counter on a Saturday where we each had a slice of pie out of that round plastic container. That was 71 72.

[@austinteutsch]

When Blockbuster revealed that 19% of it's revenue came from late fees, that was their downfall. They were strict on the time table even when kids rented under their parent's account and the parents had to pay the late fees.

[@josephcontreras8930]

Give them the 411 of the overnight drop box.

[@samspade3227]

The smell of the Woolworths soda fountain came back to me watching this. Tower records what a cool place to hang out at in the 70s. Sears just became to expensive, saw that one coming, so Kmart took over. Now it’s gone.

[@dittohead7044]

Still true about Sears Credit. Had my card since high school and never had a problem. Now even a small debt on my card is taking me years to get rid of.

[@wahwahmels41]

I LOVED BORDERS. Found so many hidden gems there and now I can’t find unique reads anymore. I’m pissed there closed !!!

[@jackilynpyzocha662]

What about Waldenbooks, I loved those stores in the malls!

[@michaelhendrickson5287]

I loved any and all bookstores. I could spend hours browsing before making my choice

[@josephcontreras8930]

Who remember waldonbooks? We didn't get a borders until 2000s so W was the chain to go to in the mid 90s here. The day mgr was so cool and so knowledgeable with his beard and buddy Holly glasses. He ordered so many books and carried a great slew of graphic novels where I got most of the best ones to own. I miss you Rich....

[@mamiebobb4173]

When I was a little girl, my sister and I would take the big catalogues outside and we'd lay on our stomachs, next to each other and we'd go through the catalogue, page by page, and we got to "shop" for one thing from the open page in front of us. We put together some incredible imaginary wardrobes from those pages!

[@caroleroseburgh1344]

When I WAS growing up, there were three grocery stores. A&P, CHATHAM'S, AND LATER FARMER JACK'S.

[@davidsquires154]

I live in the Detroit, Michigan area. I miss the following stores: 1. A&P 2. Chatham 3. Farmer Jack 4. Great Scott! 5.Wrigleys

[@lauradaly8020]

I spent a lot of time and money in both Waldenbooks and Borders. I also remember spending a lot of time and money in Tower Records, and when I had a VCR, I rented movies at Blockbuster

[@josephcontreras8930]

The famous vcr blue screen (which was not the dreaded blue screen of death) that whirr were great sights and sounds in the 80s. Just remember to put tv on 3 or 4 take it off cable play with tracking buttons oh no you need to go back to BB before it closes to buy a wet head vcr cleaning tape because the heads are dirty and get that microwave popcorn bucket while your at it.. Great times.

[@declansills1614]

Sears was a great store. I bought a lot of tools there, and what they carried was good quality. I miss our store. Our local Circuit City closed about twenty years ago. Their poor customer service caused that store to close.

[@mariekatherine5238]

I loved browsing at the Borders in the World Trade Center. I’d been there on September 10, 2001.

[@Optopolis]

Very well edited! Thanks so much for the credit! 🙌🔥💗

[@ChrisBrown-pu8sm]

Since growing up in Los Angeles California I'm accepting the change which naturally occurs in a profit for loss society. Yes I'm familiar with most of the franchises however this is the only way to accept or benefit. I believe we too are changing.

[@bigblocklawyer]

Even at a very young age, as a gear head, I knew Sears tool stores would end eventually. They were too good to be true.

[@haroldwilkes6608]

Yep, I bought broken Craftsman tools at auctions and sent them in to be replaced...they did. I still have a Sears suit and a couple of cooking pans though, tough as nails. Their stuff was too good.

[@ACGreyhound04]

I definitely remember all the little Fotomat “24 Hour Photo” kiosks from back in the 1980s. I just couldn’t remember the name until now. 24 hours now seems like an eternity in the age of the selfie!

[@micheledavidswife4336]

Blockbuster 😭 I miss them

[@pierrepellerin249]

Toys r Us still has 81 stores in Canada and announced the opening of 11 new stores 2 months ago. So they aren't dead.

[@susanpratt3290]

What about CompUSA which started as Soft Warehouse, which started in someone's garage in the DFW area?

[@richardrodriguez9723]

My granma left behind an old Sears catalog and i would spend many a night browsing. Anything you could ever possibly want was inside. You could even buy a pre-cut house, delivered by rail, ready to assemble for roughly $1800. Many still standing today.

[@nuttibuddy]

Buster Browns and saddle oxford shoes. I had to polish those shoes every night.. Ha ha ha, they wore well but I hated those things. Funny, they are a good memory now.

[@brianpetrick7512]

Does anyone besides me remember musicland? I used to go to a local mall & buy a lot of cassette tapes back in the late '80's!

[@elultimo102]

@@brianpetrick7512 How about "Quadra-sonic" LPs?

[@candicebreedlovecheney3634]

There is a Woolworths in downtown Bakersfield that is now an antique store. The exterior shot in this video is it. The coolest part is eating at the lunch counter. Best hamburger in town!

[@calendarpage]

Thanks for the info about Hecht's; you never see them on these business shows and they were huge in the DC area. I shopped in the first Border's in Ann Arbor as a college student. Too bad they couldn't keep up with the times. To be honest, once amazon came along, it would be rough going. The big bookstores focus on the middle market and popular titles. I understand. But if you have interests in academic, scientific, or other niche areas, it wasn't worth your time going in. I can get books in a variety of fields online; I can'I do that in a brick and mortar building. It's still sad to see them disappear. I shopped in Tower over the years as well. Nothing is forever. What? A&P is out of business??

[@HeronCoyote1234]

This was a trip down memory lane fir this child of the ‘60s. Thank you!

[@toplaycool21]

I miss when shopping was like that. Online shopping doesn't have that experience that physical mall and city shopping had.

[@josephcontreras8930]

"...the lights are much brighter there you can forget your troubles and go DOWNTOWN"

[@jamesjames6601]

13:15 in Southern California those former Fotomats now sell you tacos and tamales!

[@unv1977]

I miss da days before da internet, online shopping & cellphones I♥️80’s

[@dionst.michael5818]

We had a Woolworths in our little Canadian town. Used to love going to their lunch counter with my Mom. Good times.

[@edwarddoran9822]

I miss the old Kmart stores of years past

[@cocoaorange1]

In Chicago, the last one closed in 2019.

[@josephcontreras8930]

The afterglow of the blue light special cart wanes slowly into the night of our memory. For the longest time it was the only "mart" we had in our town. Miss those layaway plans that was the only way we got a lot of clothing and electronic items before we got rent to own stores.

[@howardkerr8174]

When I lived in California I used to visit Tower Records quite often. When they (FINALLY) opened a store in Memphis, a city my job transferred me to, I was quite excited. But that store wasn't open very long before they started to " downsize " it, and then after a few months Tower Records stores all over the country started closing. I had to go back to buying my music at BORDERS. After about a year or two, BORDERS stores all over the country started to close, too.

[@ThatNateGuyOnYouTube]

Thanks for crediting me 💖😊 appreciate it!

[@tommccallan8802]

Sears had a on line ordering shopping a few years before Amazon..But the C.E.O. of sears at the time thought it was just a fad so he ditched it. By the time they saw what other stores were doing on-line it was to late, and they slowly sank into bankruptcy.. GREAT PLACE TO SHOP