Defunct Department Stores From The Past

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Shopping for clothing through the years has been dominated by department stores and their brick and mortar locations, where we would spend many hours perusing. Many of these stores became trusted companies that we would revisit over and over, but then suddenly most of them began to disappear. So, let’s take a look back at our favorite department stores that are now defunct!
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[@1Springloaded]

JC Penney.

[@TonyWilliams27]

R.I.P. 99 Cents Only Stores

[@GuitarAnthony]

You know, another benefit of these videos is you can see all the sweet cars people drove at the time.

[@OfficialTransformers]

🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@bucksdiaryfan]

That's the single most effective way of telling what era you are in... the cars seem to change much more radically than anything else that is outdoors (televisions, computers, and radios are also good "markers" but they are all indoors)

[@imrytebeehyneu]

Yeah, not a single import in sight...😅

[@1Springloaded]

It is one of the side benefits of this chanal. You may enjoy My old car. If you don't already.

[@guitarfool3881]

@@imrytebeehyneu Not true . at 20:00 I see 7

[@westfield90]

I miss those days when retail shopping was the primary method of shopping and a large cornerstone of our economy. Plus the whole family experience. I have fond memories of going to these stores at Xmas or summer with my beautiful kind parents and my brother and sister. Just the happiest childhood memories one could ever hope for.

[@thihal123]

Internet shopping has its place but not the way it’s currently used. I agree with you in that shopping at brick and mortar stores provides opportunities to have shared experiences within the family.

[@kaitlynx1388]

I completely agree. I have many fond memories of department store shopping with my family as well, especially during the holidays 😊

[@BobSmith-mj7ik]

I completely agree. Online shopping is for the birds.

[@jrwizz]

Ive wasted my life from dwelling about how happy inused to be. My mom passed when i was 16 in 2001 and since then ive just given up. I know i should have been better but my will to live is gone

[@gustavsorensen9301]

I couldn’t stand when my mother dragged me to her boring department store. Thank God for Amazon

[@turbofanlover]

The Sears Christmas Wish Book is still one of my fav childhood memories. Good times...good times. I miss them.

[@lisaayers1975]

Same here 👍

[@earleneslay7977]

I miss them, too!

[@sherylheidecker9025]

Mine too

[@incog99skd11]

When I was little, me and my brother would get the Christmas Book in the mail. We would put it on the floor and go thru it together, marking everything we wanted for Christmas with a pen.

[@petegregory517]

Relatives, friends would sit in our "breakfast nook" with mom, dad for hours with kids playing around their feet while they discussed the catalog, prices, quality, competitors. A lot of visits mainly for that purpose.

[@mikeywestside8509]

I miss Radio Shack. I know it's not a department store but I just had to bring it up.

[@RJDA.Dakota]

I also miss Radio Shack. It’s where I went every so often. They had the “Battery of the Month” club where you could get batteries for items in your house for free. I bought my first shortwave radio at Radio Shack.

[@RJDA.Dakota]

I also miss Radio Shack. It’s definitely a favourite place to go and had the “Battery of the Month” club.

[@sweettoothmomma2621]

We still have a radio shack but it is not the same 😢

[@Dion-rz3fz]

I know this is trivial, and I wish we had RS back also, but I never liked it when you would want to purchase something and they would ask for your phone number, as if they required your personal information before they would take your darn money!!! It rather offended me. But like you, I have a nostalgia about them as well as many stores that are gone now.

[@leonard5606]

@@Dion-rz3fz Harbor Freight started asking for personal information last year when I stopped in, and I told the guy I just came in to buy this rake....lol

[@pianomanhere]

Marshall Field's was a special store, particularly the flagship in downtown Chicago. Many of us native Chicagoans (even we who moved away decades ago) absolutely despised Macy's for completely obliterating the Marshall Field's brand and changing the entire downtown store's look and feel. With the changes, they destroyed many decades of memories for us. Everything has changed too much, including the disturbing closures of many department store chains over the year. Occasionally one does experience a burst of sentimentality and nostalgia. Thanks for the video.

[@LJB103]

The only store that could compete with it for for sheer magnificence (that I ever shopped at) was John Wanamaker's in Philadelphia. I knew that something was up when they started to close floors and rent them out just like what happened to Boston's Jordan Marsh.

[@Yeahthatshowifeel]

Yes the old Marshall fields was everything! Now I go into that same location on State street but it doesn’t have the same feeling or vibe! It’s just like any old department store nothing special. They don’t even go all out for Christmas and decorate the windows the way they used to.

[@beautyRest1]

I love u tube , it’s like a time Maschine, you go back in time how things once were. I miss those times!!

[@incog99skd11]

Around 1956, when I was 4, Mom took me into Marshall Field's in the loop to buy me a wool scarf on a very bitter cold and windy day in Chicago. My cheeks were so red. Mom is gone now but I still have the scarf in red plaid. Eventually, Mom was a sales gal in the handbag department in Marshall Fields on the north side.

[@pianomanhere]

@LJB103 @Yeahthatshowifeel @incog99skd11 @beautyRest1 Time doesn't just fly ... It takes the Concorde...

[@angela86753]

I miss K-Mart. Used to go there when I was little with my Grandma and my Mom. Nice memories

[@leonard5606]

Yea we had a K-Mart here in my area of NC and they had a metal detector at the door you walked through......lol other than that it was dark and messy. :)

[@angela86753]

@@leonard5606 My experience was in the late 70s/early 80s in Ontario Canada. I don't remember when KMart left here but I know that location because a Sears outlet store...the clothes were hot garbage but good place if you needed sheets or towels

[@Yeahthatshowifeel]

I miss K mart too! They used to decorate so nice during Christmas time. Plus I loved that it had a little Caesars inside the store🤣

[@rexlint2520]

There's still a ton of K-Mart stores open in Australia. And they are doing very well.

[@ttintagel]

Our local K-Mart and Woolworths had really great restaurants. people would go there to eat even if they weren't shopping.

[@itsjustme7487]

I still like brick and mortar better than online.

[@glennso47]

Go to a lumber yard and buy some bricks and mortar, I suppose.

[@Dion-rz3fz]

I know what you mean, but the truth is, we can find the cheapest price easier online. And more variety online. If you have Amazon Prime, there is no shipping charges. The only thing that is kind of a pain to me is buying something like shoes, where I would really like to try them on first. BUT, as long as they let you return them at Kohls, which many times they do, its really not much of an issue.

[@muzluv33]

Sure, buying online is often cheaper and more convenient but I miss seeing, feeling and trying on clothing firsthand. The same goes for other merchandise as well - try and see before you buy. But I also miss the human touch that speaking and interacting with a salesperson gives. IMHO because of our reliance on the internet, we have lost a lot of that spirit and as a result many people have become less friendly and even lost touch with the language they speak. Progress has its pros and cons.

[@georgewilson1184]

Yeah I’m a hands on guy too I have to use and enjoy all my senses to shop for clothes boots & shoes back in the 70 s when my brother was born we seldom went out but we received a lot of mail order catalogs but there were quality controll issues damages wrong sizes colors ect ect they always had to be returned hither tither & yon

[@NASCARFAN93100]

It's always a good day whenever Recollection Road uploads

[@tquad64]

I miss Woolworth and the lunch counter

[@muzluv33]

Yes there was a Woolworth in my neighborhood and my family and I would have lunch or snacks every time we shopped there.

[@tomryan914]

...and they all smelled the same!

[@GeorgiannaMartin]

I worked in Woolworth's in the early '70s. Some fun times there❤

[@ttintagel]

Christmas hasn't been te same since Woolworth's closed.

[@clintcountryman4849]

Our TV when I was a kid came from Montgomery Ward. I miss the good ole days shopping for things as a family.

[@glennso47]

My folks had a lawnmower from Wards.

[@Yeahthatshowifeel]

Yes my parents would spend hours shopping at Montgomery Wards we would go in when it was daylight and come out when it was dark outside and we wouldn’t even notice how much time had elapsed while we were inside because there were so many things to see and buy! Then afterwards we would go to a restaurant for dinner. I would give anything to go back to those simpler times without the internet and online shopping 😩

[@incog99skd11]

The electronics brand at Montgomery Ward was "Airline". I still have an "Airline" transistor radio and reel to reel tape deck. Both still work.

[@richardfranklin5405]

@@incog99skd11 … ❤❤

[@1Springloaded]

While I remember most of of them. Zodys in Garden Grove was where my future wife was working when I met her. She worked in domestics and I needed some towels. I ended up with a wife, two daughters one son. Couple of dogs a few cats. There was a bird. Hamsters and reptiles. More memories than I can hold. Side splitting laughter. Heart breaks, tragedy and tears. Oh and one set of blue towels she recommended for the low low price of $7.99

[@VintageVermilion]

In our section of SoCal, there were many department stores from high end types like I Magnin, Buffums, Bullock’s, Robinson, Saks. Next tier occupied by May Co, The Broadway, Mervyn’s. Then there was always dependable Sears, Montgomery Wards and KMart. Going into JC Penney now is like visiting an old friend on life support.

[@L.Spencer]

There was a Buffum's in La Mesa. I remember the restaurant, but I'd like to see a photo.

[@luke8210]

When k mart opened their "super" kmart in our area i was so excited. They had mini carts and a mini door for kids. That place was so huge! I miss brick and mortar.

[@goredongoredon]

My dad liked the big bags of sandwiches from K mart: Ham&Cheese or submarines..

[@patrickmball]

Yes, but did it have a Little Cesar’s in it? Amazing times.

[@luke8210]

@@patrickmball man, little ceasars? That's legendary. Ours didn't have that. If they brought that back nowadays, I'd live there.

[@xr6lad]

Kmart is still going strong here in Australia and New Zealand . In fact it’s one of our largest department stores with 300+ stores. Woolworths also still exists here - they operate one of our largest supermarket chains plus have a chain of dept-stores called Big W (same format as Kmart).

[@chrissy0078]

Wow! Does your Kmart still sell Jacquelyn Smith clothing & Martha Stewart housewares?

[@ynot0714]

Never would have thought that!

[@crowe668]

Wow, that's so cool...I want to move there.

[@starmnsixty1209]

I'm sure it's another company, though presumably sold off from the US K Mart. You seem to be the same character who shows up on similar channels on this exact same subject. Can't you find another hobby which doesn't confuse people. Maybe herding kangaroos🦘🦘 or something?

[@larrycj4382]

The Australian Woolworths supermarkets are not linked to the Woolworths stores. It's a completely different company. There are stores still related to the original Woolworths such as those in Germany, Austria and Poland which are thriving.

[@footballlvnlady]

Miss all these stores! Yesterday drove by the large empty land where our Sears was. 😢

[@crey3817]

Seeing the 99 Cents Only and Family Dollar Stores close down today because of "Legalized" shop lifting made me think of the stores in this video...and I felt so sad...

[@TopHotDog]

Shopping lifting is only a pretext. Reducing options of how and where we can buy is the primary objective. By forcing people to fewer outlets, many are being compelled to use the Internet, which reduces the individual's ability to source real bargains. One more step towards a completely managed worldwide society.

[@user-ke8st8jc1v]

⁠@@TopHotDogTrue and another way to “ dehumanize “ people,making the society less interactive,lazy ,entitled and ultimately poor by overconsumption,depressed ,sad and lonely.

[@topper1958]

All thanks to the demoCRAP party. They own it.

[@freedomrings1420]

At 64 ,i don't mind not being around most people, especially if they voted for biden who is destroying America. ​@@user-ke8st8jc1v

[@angeldesigns1385]

@@TopHotDogwe’ve always had mail order catalog stores with sears, fingerhut, and Spiegel, just to name a few. all of our retail stores are still going consistently strong where I live, and we don’t have any of the smash and grab issues.

[@shellymyers9676]

My grandfather opened a Ben Franklin five and dime in the 1930's in Carrollton Ohio. It is still there, though not the same format. My mother Co-owned one in Orrville Ohio from 1961 until 1976.

[@MillerMeteor74]

When we moved to this part of NJ in 1985 there were two Ben Franklins here, one in Egg Harbor City, and one in Absecon. I had previously never heard of them. The Egg Harbor City location closed years ago but the Absecon location is still going. They operate a picture framing business out of it also.

[@glennso47]

We had a neighbor who ran a Ben Franklin store in Mount Carroll Illinois.

[@thejourney1369]

We had one here where I grew up in Virginia. The guy that owned it would follow you through the store like you were going to shoplift something. For a long time, that was our only store that was a five and dime.

[@shellymyers9676]

@@thejourney1369 Shoplifting is what caused my mom's store to close. Kids walking home from school would help themselves to the small toys. It added up.

[@map3384]

Loved the Ben Franklin. Candy and plastic model kits.

[@MillerMeteor74]

For us in the 70s the biggest department store was always Sears. Then there was J.C. Penney. But K Mart was always the biggest discount store. My best friend and I used to say that nearly everything in our homes was either bought at Sears or K Mart. I remember Caldor, but I don't remember where or when. I remember commercials for Korvette's, but never saw a Korvette store. Yes, Two Guys! That was a store my parents went to occasionally. The location we went to is shown at 18:10. We also occasionally went to H.L. Green and W.T. Grant. But I have no idea where "our" stores would have been.

[@TJames526]

I must admit that I’m one of the kids that couldn’t wait for the Christmas catalog 😆😆My Mother would hand it to me along with a marker to circle things I wanted…. Ahh, those were the days 🥰Wards, Sears,Mervyns, KMart,Woolworths, were all regular shopping places for us🙂I also absolutely loved Service Merchandise ♥️Nobody had better jewelry prices!!!

[@tomryan914]

"How does a Jew celebrate Christmas?" "On Dec. 24th they all join hands, dance around and a cash register. singing 'What a friend we have in Jesus!' ".$$$$...

[@lovly2cu725]

Korvettes also in NJ. My dad worked there selling appliances. Great clothes and vinyl records.

[@gregggoss2210]

Korvettes in Audubon N.J.?

[@NinjaZXRR]

There was a Korvette store in Iberville Quebec Canada, but it showed up after the original chain closed down, never knew it was from an American chain. Perhaps they just used the same name.

[@quigonjin6030]

Kor-vetties, as their commercials joked, was also in Paramus, NJ. Across from the Bergen mall. Best vinyl record dept in the 1970-80s

[@map3384]

We had a Korvettes in Nanuet New York. When it went bust a Service Merchandise opened shortly after. That too went bust.

[@Cape-Dweller]

@@quigonjin6030disc-o-mat opened down route 4 and had a great selection.

[@charlieyosha68]

I used to go to Abraham & Strauss, better known as A&S, in New York, New Jersey area.

[@Lisa-je5bb]

Best store ever. Across from macy, I really miss that store

[@muzluv33]

So did I.

[@joshuamountz6891]

As a child on Cleveland's west side a trip to one of our two nearby K mart stores in early August was a sad reminder that summer was drawing to a close, and the arrival of the Sears wish book was a sure sign that Christmas was coming soon and it was time to show my parents what I wanted and write that letter to Santa

[@OfficialTransformers]

🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯

[@blandrooker6541]

One childhood memory of K Mart is the smell of popcorn and onions from the food stand right inside the front doors. I and my buddies never went further than that, we had no interest of anything else besides the huge (in our kid's eyes) sleeves of popcorn and the ham sandwiches.

[@OfficialTransformers]

🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯

[@reallymadnomad7330]

Thank you. I had forgotten that.

[@Yeahthatshowifeel]

Mines had a little Caesar’s pizza inside and as a little kid it was quite a treat to go inside and get rewarded with a slice of pizza after shopping with my parents all afternoon😂

[@bruce8808]

As a kid I remember the old White Front store. Millers outpost had a great assortment of shirts. Montgomery Wards I do miss. The last time I bought anything at a Sears was 20 years ago before they all closed up. I miss those days.

[@pianomaly9]

Remember White Front, don't think I've encountered it in any videos.

[@Tomatohater64]

Of all the department stores mentioned here, the one I miss the most is Service Merchandise. Our family bought a large portion of our house's interior decorations here in the 1970s and 1980s in Pittsburgh. Really miss this place.

[@Dion-rz3fz]

I never really understood their concept. Why go around marking down items you want, only to have to wait for it to come out on a conveyer belt? I thought it was kind of silly, and pointless. Maybe just trying to be different, for the sake of being different?

[@Tomatohater64]

@@Dion-rz3fz Not sure, but half our house was filled with their offerings. I personally enjoyed going to their stores; as a youngster, I thought they were "fancy."

[@Dion-rz3fz]

@@Tomatohater64 I was a little stubborn and set in my ways even as a child!! Lol. They were the new kid on the block when they came into our city, and I didn't like the unusual concept. It seemed unnecessarily "different" by making you wait to have your stuff come out from the back on the conveyer belt. I didn't like change. Still don't! Lol. Guess I was a "curmudgeon," even then! But we did purchase some things from them too.

[@Rockhound6165]

I don't know if you remember but once upon a time after each puzzle on Wheel of Fortune, the winning contestant would go on a shopping spree and after they spent their winnings, whatever they had left went onto a Service Merchandise gift certificate.

[@Tomatohater64]

@@Rockhound6165 Good deal. 👍👍

[@kathleenevans1201]

I loved Mervyn's. I was devastated when it closed. I wish that Kohl's closed instead.

[@lovly2cu725]

Kohl's has been in financial troubles for years.

[@MustangSally7259]

I loved Mervyns too!

[@larrycj4382]

I used to go to Mervyn's when I visited California. I still have Christmas ornaments from a visit long ago!

[@LM-vx9wd]

Thank you so much for mentioning my cousin Dorothy Shaver at 16:23. She was president of Lord & Taylor and was the first woman in history to lead a multi-million dollar company.

[@buickinvicta288]

Loved Lord & Taylor 😢

[@wintersprite]

I remember Lord and Taylor (they went out a few years ago so not that hard to forget, I guess). I also remember Filenes.

[@Lisa-je5bb]

Lord and Taylor had the best Christmas windows

[@jenniferhansen3622]

That's so awesome!

[@map3384]

Lord and Taylor were known for their service and quality merchandise. Truly miss them.

[@frankrizzo4460]

I remember Kmart's parking lot behind packed with cars when I was a kid. My Mom would always try to get there early to try to get a spot. Also Zayre and Burdines in South Florida.

[@RJDA.Dakota]

I remember Zayre as well.

[@RJDA.Dakota]

I remember Zayre as well.

[@MarcPagan]

Thanks for the work and upload. Fun, and sad at the same time, to see some of these former stores :)

[@karenroot450]

Omg. I just remembered my mom didn’t want me to wear pants to school at the age of 12 I got her to change her mind. I was allowed to wear Levi’s but only on Fridays. Then she buys me three polyester pants suits in three different colors. They were ok but too old of a style. But I wore them. When I finally got to High School I had acquired 2 pairs of hip huggers jeans one burgundy and the other was dark green. I loved them as I finally felt like I was dressing ‘normally’!! Yeah progress. My favorite pair of jeans was a crazy patch work pattern which I always wore with my red white n blue suede shoes. Ah memories are great !!

[@joeheid2776]

We always went to Gimbels for Christmas in Pittsburgh. Thick memories here.

[@blockcl]

"It looks like the back room at Monkey Ward's." This was a common assessment of any junk filled space. I said this recently when we were in my grandson's garage. My wife laughed, but Charlie and Ashleigh (his girlfriend) didn't get it. Guess I'm officially old now.

[@crystalmiller4022]

I was wondering if I'd see a comment about Monkey Wards. lol

[@TheresOnlyOneWayToRock]

Our store in Springfield IL. was very organized but I know what you mean. Also, we would get in trouble if we referred to the store as anything other than Montgomery Ward... if we got caught. Not that I care, just thought I'd throw that in.

[@twistedtrails8128]

@8:17. when a company buys another to try to save it, they both end up going down the tubes...

[@maryisabell8760]

I always ‘thought’ buying out one store was to get there inventory & stock , some type of boost for there own company . I really never thought it was to save the failing store .

[@BakedRBeans]

Home Grocer and Webvan!

[@touchofgrey5372]

@11:05.... take a good look at how people dressed in those days! As if they were attending an opera or a graduation of their kid from a medical school. Impeccable attire; women were ladies and men were gentlemen. Unlike today; you're lucky if you see people in clean clothes. Very, very enjoyable video, Thanks very much!

[@neonnoodle1169]

It's very noticeable how much better things looked back then. Most people look healthier and not overweight and yes, today we're lucky if the person next to us in a store isn't in their pajamas.

[@touchofgrey5372]

@@neonnoodle1169 🤣🤣🤣

[@starmnsixty1209]

​@@touchofgrey5372 obtain a 🧠

[@gregwasserman2635]

Fun fact - Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer was a book published for Motgomery Ward. Hard to believe some of these companies are gone, but mergers and on-line shopping helped with their demise. Of course, incompotent leadership and greed sure helped! Just look at the Sears/Kmart disaster merger by Fast Eddie Lampert. He used the Ayn Rand model of running a business and promptly ran it into the ground quickly. There are still 6 Kmart stores and 11 Sears stores, but how long this will last is unknown. The remaining Kmart stores, with the exception of the one in Florida that was shoehorned in their garden center, have a monopoly on things, but the Sears stores don't seem to be viable at all (the Sears number would be even lower, but two were recently re-opened late in 2023). I enjoyed going shopping with mom to many of these stores in the 70s, especially during the Christmas season, but times change, and people nowdays use the internet to shop, including myself! BTW, love the photos of the old stores. They were certainly better looking than the more sterile stores of today. They had a grander appearance back then.

[@DanL57]

Eddie Lambert has a deserved reputation as a crazy moron.

[@cindys9858]

She had no education or experience in finance, economics or business. She was always stickling her nose in so many things she knew nothing about. Her education was rather limited, and ended up on social security.

[@kathleenevans1201]

I'd love to see an episode about Horn and Hardart automats! 😊

[@keithwilson6060]

My mom was from Philadelphia in the mid-20th Century and would tell us all about H&H automats. It sounded wonderful. Her family wasn’t rich and never ate out, but on her birthday her mother would take her to H&H as a special treat. She said the food was always above par.

[@kathleenevans1201]

@@keithwilson6060 oh, the memories! How wonderful ❤️

[@frankwafer6919]

Thanks for the wonderful memories of yesteryear!😯💯💫👍!

[@luke8210]

I really miss Montgomery ward. Come to think of it I miss sears too. I don't even visit out local mall area anymore.

[@chetthebee1322]

In my area there were Grant's, Murphy's, Pebble's, Shelby's, Woolworth's, Jamesway and Ames. All gone now.

[@kimwalter6341]

I have heard that Ames is going to come back!

[@wintersprite]

My mom worked at Ames until they closed. One of the saddest parts was that if they hadn’t closed, she was going to take her vacation with me in 2004 to go to Disney World for out high school’s band and choir trip (I was in choir). Luckily, she was still able to go to London with our Girl Scout troop.

[@Rockhound6165]

Jamesway. Fun Fact: I still have a bath towel I bought at Jamesway and recently I threw away a boombox I bought there.

[@Rockhound6165]

@@kimwalter6341 heard this as well.

[@map3384]

We had a Grants in West Haverstraw NY. Loved the lunch counter and toy department as a kid.

[@MerrimanDevonshire]

Fun Fact: Both Korvette and Service Merchandise were in the same location at 12 Mile and Gratiot in Roseville Michigan. An Apartment Complex down the street on 12 Mile is still named after Korette.

[@davidkerk5676]

Monkey Wards was great but as i grew older nothimg beat the tool isle of Sears. As a kid the Christmas catalog was magical.

[@jerryhorn4697]

Memories of my childhood Christmases always included the annual Sears Christmas Wish Catalogue. They were made for great bedtime reading!

[@richardshermanjr1899]

I miss the tool aisle of Sears also. I still have Craftsman tools I bought from Sears.

[@TheresOnlyOneWayToRock]

Yep, got my first credit card from Sears just for the tools. The fact that they sold pretty much everything made it convenient too.

[@chugwaterjack4458]

Sears for tools, Wards for underwear, Penneys for shirts and suits, Buster Brown for shoes.

[@JosephGoclowski]

B.Altmans in NYC still miss it.

[@larrycj4382]

What a classy store! I went to their closing sale which was so sad.

[@mchristr]

Another Bay Area store was the Emporium. I remember going up and down the escalator as my mom shopped. Good times.

[@juliecallahan4372]

My mom and I shopped at Korvettes in NYC in the 1960’s

[@JHixon-bi8ok]

“Monkey” Wards, Gimbels, Woolworth, Marshall Fields…all of these stores were popular in the city where I grew up. Lots of fun shopping, there!

[@sergeipohkerova7211]

Older people often tell me (I'm 23) that people used to make working at the department store a real career, and you'd get benefits and actually make a real living, be able to buy a house or at least support your family in an apartment anyway. People at stores were skilled, helpful, and professional. Nowadays I'm used to just not getting amy help at all if I go to the store fot clothes. I usually juat buy online anyway. I guess in their quest for maximum profit, the store owners settle on no profit as their whole business model is obsolete and they don't bother making a department store experience attractive anyway, either for customers or employees.

[@sonhuynh8222]

Growing up (I’m 52) I remembered knowing shoe salesman in downtown Seattle making almost $100k per year …. This was back in the 90s !!!

[@4363HASHMI]

Being skilled back in the day was to be an typist

[@summerrose4286]

This is very true. Store employees were professional, and an attitude would get you fired. Of course, most customers were far more polite as well. For one thing, people didn't shop as much. Shopping was an experience. As a child, we only shopped every so often for something we needed and for which my parents had saved. Society on the whole was vastly different then. Adults were more polite (of course there were exceptions but NOTHING like the rudeness of today) and children were expected to behave. And, lifestyles were not elaborate back then. People didn't overspend or feel entitled as they do now. Life was cozy and comfortable, with lots of hard work, and centered around home, church, school, work and family. Shopping today is a frustrating experience. Not helping a customer, messy stores, understocked and undermanned stores, pointing a customer in the direction of a product or saying you didn't know where something was would not have been tolerated by the owner or management. I stay out of stores as much as humanly possible.

[@tatersquad2000]

Stores didn't just suddenly start wanting profit. The problem is inflation. You could mow lawns in the 60s and make the equivalent of 60k today. The government has robbed you.

[@TheresOnlyOneWayToRock]

Plus a discount (card) was one of the benefits. Montgomery Ward gave us a 10% discount at first then as I remember, after 6 months the discount was bumped up to 20% storewide. It came in handy since MW sold pretty much everything.

[@maxpower2511]

There was Bamburgers before it became Macy's

[@lovly2cu725]

Hamburgers was a division of Macy's mostly in NJ. I was a yellow flower in Willowbrook mall.

[@lovly2cu725]

Abraham & Straus was the competition and was bought out by Macys

[@maxpower2511]

@@lovly2cu725 Oh I did not know it was already part of Macy's. I remember that and Alexanders.

[@leonard5606]

I went through Macy's a few weeks ago at the mall here in NC and I didn't see any employees through out the whole damn store......glad I didn't need any help but nothing special about it just clothes and a few appliances. :)

[@map3384]

My first credit card was a Bambergers back in 1984.

[@joezuccardo3245]

You misted Klines and B Altmans, They had stores in New York city and Westchester county N Y

[@jeremy1350]

Yup, we had a Jefferson Ward in Miami, it was called Jefferson's. Hello K Mart Shoppers, over in Kitchen ware, there is a BLUE LIGHT Special going on. That was my mothers choice to go shopping, it's where I bought my first book series, The Chronicles of Narnia, and ALL of my K -Tell Records. Service Merchandise was located just a short drive, or even a bike ride from where I lived in Miami. I bought many a Christmas present in that store. We filled out an order form and pay and the items would come via a conveyor belt to the drop location for pick up. Sears was an anchor store in many locations in Miami. Cutler Ridge Mall and also on Miracle Mile in Coral Gables. Here in Montreal, when I first moved here, there was a Sears Catalog Drop location where I did my laundry in my first apartment. Burdines was located at Dadeland Mall as one of the Anchor stores of the mall. Lord and Taylor was also located at Dadeland Mall. When I was a small boy, we lived in New Britain Ct, my mother worked at Two Guys at the Twin City Shopping Center on the Berlin Turnpike, across the parking lot was the Twin City Theatre where we saw the first Star Wars Film in 1977.

[@starmnsixty1209]

K-Tell Records. 👍👍

[@kimberlyevans72]

I truly love your videos.. They truly take me back to my youth and when things were so much simpler. Thank you for all the memories

[@GuitarAnthony]

I'll never forget my parents in their Italian accents calling Sears 'Sissy Robey' (the 'Robey' being former Sears partner Roebuck...if you went to an old enough Sears you'd still find the Roebuck name in entryways).

[@allenwallace9062]

The guy who wrote the original "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer " was a salesman for Montgomery Ward. I have seen a copy of that book.

[@garytanger965]

2024 04 21... Many of these stores had items or the way they were displayed that kept me returning. But more than that, it was the people that I dealt with. Many times after hearing what I needed, they helped me buy a product that fit my needs. In most cases, when the store closed, I never saw that person again. I miss these stores, but I miss the people that worked there even more 😢

[@johnshumski8362]

I was a dept manager at Caldor in the early 80's , any former employees remember their store # , mine was #29 in West Hartford CT.

[@wandamarkle2642]

We had a Bon Ton forever. They had anything you wanted including high end clothing. Could you feature them

[@wintersprite]

My parents grew up in Norwalk, CT.

[@thomasBanjopunk]

Wow, this was good. This was Really good. Thank you, Sir! 😊

[@panatypical]

My oldest niece said that Mervyn's blows. If you go up on Harbor Boulevard from Fullerton into La Habra and turn right on Imperial Highway, there's a street called Mervyn's in about 300 yards. That's where the Mervyn's used to be, and of course it's now a Kohl's.

[@GeorgiannaMartin]

Where is this?

[@panatypical]

@@GeorgiannaMartin Fullerton California, in Orange County, just north of Anaheim

[@GeorgiannaMartin]

Thanks

[@tuffy2342]

I loved Service Merchandise. I still have things from there.

[@lovly2cu725]

Two guys also awesome.

[@karenroot450]

Love the content on this channel. Oh so many memories shopping with mom and my brothers. We would go to the white sales mom wold make a pile of stuff and leave one or two of us there to guard them while she went and got more piles together. We had 6 kids in the house so constantly needing items. I have a treasured 1897 Sears and Roebucks catalog, I little rough for wear but so cool to peruse. The stoves are incredible works of art with all the polished nickel and porcelain. I love all the farm implements also.

[@vince8436]

Korvets was in Illinois too. Mom worked there when I was 7 or 8.

[@oreally8605]

Zayre, GoldBlatt's Sears, many great old stores.

[@paulwicklund5044]

Wiebolts too.

[@paulsoxl7739]

All my school clothes came from Wiebolts

[@Joyce-bg1jh]

My folks had credit cards for Montgomery Wards and Penny's.When my son was little in the late 80s and early 90s I used to take him to KMart shopping.Always bought him little toy cars there.😊

[@LARomeo-jy9uw]

RIP to Hills department store one I still miss !

[@larrycj4382]

When I visited Huntsville, AL years ago, I went into the HUGE Hills store there and bought so much- from humongous Tootsie Rolls to a toy Godzilla which is still on my desk in my office!

[@cyclenut]

Remember K-Mark Blue light specials? and getting a hot dog and drink - during the 70s? Woolco and Woolworth use to have HO scale trains and slot cars - when they were closing stores during the 70s one could get HO trains and slot cars very cheap. As a boy I would get all I could and ended up with enough to fill a basketball court. Young kids today do not know what it was like when the Sears Christmas catalog arrived.

[@glennscotti8891]

My first job was kmart in Hamilton Nj. We had a caldor, bradlees( former Jefferson Ward) and Ames(former clover) all in the same area. They all thrived back in the day.

[@PandaBear62573]

I remember where they were and shopped in all of those stores. Also, the Macy's at the Quaker Bridge Mall was bambergers until the 1980's. Bamberger's started in downtown Trenton then opened the mall location when the mall opened in the '70's.

[@glennscotti8891]

@@PandaBear62573 my moms go to dept store was Dunhams at independence mall

[@Dragon_rls]

My first guitar came from Korvette, back in 1974🎸

[@bridgetmccracken1381]

I miss Hills and Kmart!

[@emeyer6963]

Shopped in the Williamsport PA Hills when I was working for Little League in summer of 1982.

[@MarleneTrujillo-uc8bj]

Service Merchandise where my first husband bought my wedding ring. I knew when I saw the ring our marriage was doomed lol

[@GreekGypsy]

😂

[@peggyl2849]

LOL, my engagement ring with a tiny diamond chip in it came from Service Merchandise - $29.90 in the 80s. I should have known also. I wasn't looking to wear a house down payment around on my hand, but it was kind of like he was checking off an obligation as cheaply as possible. I was a little embarrassed when we went shopping for wedding bands and the sales person kept a straight face talking about something that would go with my 'diamond.'

[@RJDA.Dakota]

You missed Famous-Barr, owned by the May Company. Famous-Barr was the flagship of the May Department Stores Company. I worked for the largest Famous-Barr in downtown St. Louis, Missouri. Venture stores were also owned by May Co.

[@summerrose4286]

In the uploading of videos, have older videos been removed? I hope not as I replay the old ones often as there are several that I love, and i like to listen to them as I clean. There was a video that showed a young girl in a dress walking past a small building in the thumbnail. I think there were a few little boys playing or ordering food in the thumbnail as well. I loved that video and it suddenly disappeared. I have driven myself crazy trying to find it. Can anyone help? Does anyone know which video I mean? This channel is my happy place, both the videos itself and the stories in the comments. I thank you all.

[@Jeroen74]

Do you happen to have Watch History turned on? Did you give the video a thumbs up? If the video was set to 'unlisted' you can still find it back in those two places, unless the video was set to private or has been deleted.

[@bigalcincinnatikidadventur7692]

K-Mart & Service Merchandise, ah the memories. I remember getting so excited about the Sears Christmas Catalog when I was a kid and just looking for the toys that I wanted for Christmas!!!

[@Bill_Woo]

"KZbin Chapters" would be great for a video like this. Great channel! Really!

[@rosemaryrodeghiero9721]

I also miss May Company, Broadway and Robinson's department stores. 😢 Also, there were many 'bed & bath' shops like Linens & Things that were wonderful to shop at 💔.

[@juliepoolie5494]

I remember going to Kmart after church on Sundays and we would buy have and rolls from there and bring it home for our Sunday supper.

[@cabbitkisser2620]

when i was a kid growing up in the 70's. my town had Jefferson ward - Woolworths - sears & a Kmart. we didn't get zayers until 82 or 83 then later they switch out to aimes. when aimes closed down a bank open up where aimes used to be. back in the 80's i did most of my school shopping at Kmart's. we didn't get Walmart's until the late 80's early 90's

[@timothyweers8054]

We had several in our area that were popular. Hannes, was in one of the main malls we used to go to. Epsteins department store lived in Morristown, NJ for years and years before closing completely in the early 2000s. Strawbridges was a landmark department store in South Jersey and Pennsylvania. Sterns lost its lease to Macy's about 20 years ago. There was a time Macy's was incorporated with Bamburgers in the 70s and early 80s. Consumers occupied our area as a store similar to Service Merchandise, where you would get a card off the table, using a chopped off pencil, look in a catalog using the 6 digit ID number and handing it to the customer service person and they would go in the back and get the item. Ben Franklin was another 5 and 10 store that had multiple departments to it before the 1990s. Rickels used to be a garden center that tried to branch out into a housewares store before closing completely in the mid 1980s along with Channel Lumber. I also had the pleasure for working for A C Moore, which ended in 2020 where people are still griping about closing, they were basically an arts and crafts store which started pulling in other odds and ends before deciding to close its doors during the pandemic.

[@terrideutsch6820]

I'm from Morristown. Grew up there in the 50s n 60s. Remember Epsteins well. It was a beautifull store as well as bambergers in that iconic building with the friezes of the presidents around the top. Santa used to land on the roof from a helicopter at xmas time to a huge cheering crowd. Memories i haven't thought about in years and years. Thanks for your post.

[@timothyweers8054]

@@terrideutsch6820 I miss seeing the square around Thanksgiving to Christmas time.

[@Spokenfan]

Thank you for sharing 👍🏻👍🏻. Stay safe healthy and happy ✝️🇺🇸

[@ttintagel]

We shopped a lot at Montgomery Ward when I was little because it was the only place Dad would let Mom open a charge account.

[@mikematusek4233]

Here's one that I remember growing up with in Phoenix, AZ, F.W. Grants. There was also Goldwaters.

[@anthonymastrando9299]

My first credit card was Gimbals and I loved shopping at the Korvette’s Audubon NJ shopping center.

[@billharker5424]

Dang this was a real trip down memory lane! Thanks for putting this together and sharing.❤

[@agostinodibella9939]

Wow, there are many stores listed here I have forgotten for years. Thank you for the memories!

[@Dion-rz3fz]

I did not grow up having a Walmart. But we had Katz City, and a little later had a Venture Store. Those stores were similar to a Walmart. We had several dime stores as well. Jupiter, Newberries, and I cant remember the name of the other one. I remember a Kresgies, but I think that might have become Jupiter. Too many years ago to remember! Lol.

[@adoseof_me3002]

When I was little my mom also shopped at Zayre.

[@northmaineguy5896]

I was born in Western Mass and we had Two Guys, J. M. Fields, Ames, and Lechmeres.

[@johnshumski8362]

I remember two guys , family shopped there alot.

[@sabrinapittsley2304]

Chicopee Holyoke area. 😊

[@Foxonian]

@@sabrinapittsley2304 It was in Chicopee at the now defunct Fairfield Mall. Bradlees went into the space after Two Guys went out. They lasted until the chain failed and Wall Mart tore down the building for their current Supercenter.

[@lp-xl9ld]

My father used to tell me that E.J. Korvette got its name from the fact that it was started by eleven Jewish Korea veterans. That aside, spent a lot of time (and probably money) there during the 70s.

[@LtJackboot]

I'll never forget the feeling of: 'ATTENTION KMART SHOPPERS....'

[@rosemoore5364]

Hi. We had a Korvette's in Brooklyn, NY. There was also a Wetson's fast food restaurant. Have a nice day everyone.

[@joerichardwad1645]

What people seem to forget when they get nostalgic about these department store chains is that they wiped out so many small, mom & pop businesses that couldn’t compete. Partially as a result of these chains closing, small specialty retailers have made a resurgence.

[@biancagerade4229]

Thank you recollection road I enjoy your shows😊

[@jeffreys-vu6gd]

I worked at the Paramus, NJ Korvette's from early 1979 until the closing on Christmas Eve, 1980. It was a part-time college job and I loved it.

[@parsifal40002]

I miss hearing the announcement of the "blue light" special at Kmart.

[@delibakerytravel]

I Look Forword To Your Channel So Much.. Thank You!!

[@user-vm5ud4xw6n]

Geez I forgot all about some of these places. Never heard of Monkey Wards until I moved to the midwest. Miss Marshall Fields. I always liked them better than when they changed to Macy’s. If you’re older than probably 50-55, Macy’s isn’t for you. I guess depending on what you like. I liked Service Merchandise! Korvettes was another store I grew up with. Great memories. I wonder what’s going to happen to the NYC Macy’s. There’s so much vandalism right now. I can’t see them staying open. And with people moving out of the city it doesn’t look good. Oh boy, I completely forgot about 2 Guys. My dad used to like to shop there. And of course, Gimbals in Philly! Times change. Sad!

[@jons.6216]

Montgomery Ward is back again as a catalog, as I get about two of them a couple of times a year! I bought a Signature brand microwave from them and that thing lasted for 13 years until a power surge in a storm finally killed it! I still miss Mervyn's as they were finally getting better inventory in the last decade! Ironically to this video info the one that used to be here in San Francisco closed and then reopened to become a two story Target! Best Catalog Store was similar to Service Merchandise and even had the uniqueness of having several incredible architectural novelties in their building structures across the country! Also very missed to me was the Emporium Department Stores! Some of my first Christmas ornaments were purchased from them in the 1980s!

[@ericknoblauch9195]

Montgomery Wards name and intellectual property rights was sold in 2001 as part of their bankruptcy liquidation. The buyer turned Wards into a catalog and internet retailer. There is a website up and running. You can order from them online.

[@TheresOnlyOneWayToRock]

@@ericknoblauch9195 - If only they saw the future of the internet and online sales opportunities, instead of the go to Amazon we might be buying from Montgomery Ward or Sears.

[@lindaward3156]

As a child I felt like royalty at a Montgomery Ward store. I thought they must be my family as we had the same name. When you are a kid - especially during the pre-tech years - you don't think your name is common.

[@veronicaferguson8548]

I miss our local stores Rikes and Elder Beermans.

[@cynthiamurphy3669]

Lord, yes! I'm in Dayton/Kettering, Ohio, and have fond memories of both Rikes and Beermans. I went to high school (Patterson Coop) in downtown Dayton in the early 70s. We'd hit Rike's or Beerman's sometimes after school before we caught a bus back home. My first job was part-time in the shoe department as a teen at Rike's Kettering. Great memories for sure.

[@user-zx8de8op9l]

Venture, Zayre, Shopko, Pamida, Topps, Goldblatt's, Wiboldt's, Boston Store, Younkers, McDade;s, Bells/Bellscott ( we had one in Waukegan, IL)

[@TJ-bu9zk]

Love your videos. As a Canadian, a lot of stores I have heard of from you for the first time.