Posts Tagged ‘nrf’
Wednesday, April 24th, 2013
Plummer & Associates has completed the assignment to recruit the President for Viva International. Mr. Antonia Bortuzzo has accepted the role and will lead this Somerville, New Jersey eyewear manufacturer and distributor. Viva International Group is a global leader in high-quality, fashion eyewear. Its portfolio ranges from accessible luxury brands GANT by Michael Bastian and GUESS by Marciano, to fashion and lifestyle brands BONGO®, CANDIE’S®, Catherine Deneuve, GANT, GANT Rugger, GUESS, Harley-Davidson®, RAMPAGE®, SKECHERS and William Rast, and value names Viva, Magic Clip®, and Savvy.
Most recently, Antonio Bortuzzo was chief executive officer (CEO) of Alain Mikli International Group in Paris. Mikli designs, manufactures and distributes ophthalmic frames and
sunwear, and has retail stores worldwide. Previously, he was the CEO of fashion optical eyewear wholesaler Allison S.p.A. in Padova, Italy, and, from 2002-2007 he was the CEO and general manager of Marcolin Group, Belluno as well as CEO of Marcolin, U.S. in Scottsdale, Ariz.
Susan Gill and I are pleased we were once again able to bring such high caliber talent to Viva International and similar high growth organizations. Over the past few months we have recruited the General Manager – International for Viva International based in the U.K., the General Manager – Canada, and the Senior Vice President – Sales for Viva in the U.S. This demonstrates our abilities to conduct international search assignments for our clients.
Tags: big box retail, dina lokets, executive search firms, heidi plummer, International Optical, International Retail, Italy, john plummer, macy's, modesto, national retail federation, new canaan Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, nrf, optical, optical retail, plummer & associates, plummer and associates, Plummersearch, plummersearch.com, retail careers, retail executive recruiters, retail executive search, retail recruiters, retailexecutivesearchfirms.com, susan gill, USC, wholesale optical, Womens Wear Daily, wsj
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
Wednesday, April 24th, 2013
The pundits are having a good time poking fun at Ron Johnson’s expense. Yes, he made big mistakes. However, he was not the real problem.
Penney’s has been declining for years. The real blame belongs to the Board and the prior management. Over the years, J C Penney focused on the same customer and followed those customers as they grew older; management failed to attract younger customer. Everyone in retail knows the younger customers are the profitable customers. Only during the brief tenure of Allen Questrom and Vanessa Castagna did J C Penney do the right things.
I always believed the probability of success in Ron’s strategy to take JCP upscale and simultaneously attract a younger customer was unlikely. As retailers switch from one customer base to another, the retailer usually first finds the bottom of the Grand Canyon. That is where JCP is today. The old customers do not like what they see and the new customers do not like shopping with the old customers. In my mind, investors cannot afford to take the time required to successfully support a retail turnaround.
I have seen several retailers attempt to make customer base changes. Some that come to mind are:
- Abraham & Straus Department Stores – Brooklyn, New York
- Sears – The Softer Side
- Kmart- The New Kmart
- Mervyn’s – Mervyn’s California
All were colossal failures. On the other hand, Target did successfully make a change but it was done gradually and over several years. The customer base change was also less significant.
The essence of this story is that the Board and management need to keep their eyes focused on the long-term health of the company versus short-term quarterly tactics. The truth is that a merchant prince can seldom pull off a successful major change in customer base.
Tags: big box retail, big box retailers, Dallas, Department Store History, department stores, dina lokets, ecommerce, executive search firms, fashion, fashion careers, Fashion Institute, heidi plummer, J.C. Penney Co, JCP, john plummer, modesto, national retail federation, nrf, plano, plummer & associates, plummer and associates, Plummersearch, plummersearch.com, retail, retail careers, retail executive search, Retail History, retail recruiters, retailexecutivesearch.com, retailing, Specialty retail, susan gill, TEXAS, USC, wholesale, Womens Wear Daily, WWD
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
Friday, December 9th, 2011
A T STEWART & COMPANY - NYC - (stereoview card - prior to postcards)
DEPARTMENT STORES OF NEW YORK – A. T. STEWART
Alexander Turney Stewart, an Irish immigrant, opened his dry goods store in 1823. The first store was located at 283 Broadway. The business became so successful he opened a second, much larger store on Broadway between Chambers and Reade Streets. This new store was, in fact, the largest in New York City. It was known as the Marble Palace as the building was clad in Tuckahoe marble. Lord & Taylor which operated out of a small store in Greenwich Village was its only competitor. The store sold imported European merchandise. Fashion shows were held on the second floor in the Ladies Parlor renowned for its large mirrors. The store became well known for its unique design and for the merchandise carried. This store is today known as the first department store in the U.S.
In 1860, Mr. Stewart built a new store further uptown on Broadway between 9th and 10th Streets which opened in 1862. This store was still larger and much closer to where the other stores had moved on the Ladies Mile (Macy’s, B. Altman, Lord & Taylor). Cast iron construction allowed the store to be more open and provided for large windows on the street level to showcase merchandise. The building was called the Iron Palace.
Besides being known as the creator of the first department store in the U.S., Mr. Stewart also became known for creating his own mills and sewing factories to produce product for his store. He gained more fame for laying out the plan for Garden City on Long Island.
Alexander Stewart died in 1876. His company continued in business until 1882 when it became Hilton, Hughes & Co run by associates of Mr. Stewart. Unfortunately, the new company failed and closed in August, 1896. The next month the store was acquired by Wannamaker’s from Philadelphia.
Wanamaker’s first building at 280 Broadway later became the headquarters for the New York Sun, the publisher of “Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus”. The building is now owned by the City of New York. The Iron Palace burned down in a massive fire in the 1950’s when it operated as a John Wannamaker store.
The first department store in the world is the Au Bon Marche in Paris, France. Although A. T. Stewart’s first store opened before Au Bon Marche, his first store was small and was not considered a department store in terms of organization.
Although there are many block prints of the A. T. Stewart store, there are few postcards. The store existed before postcards became legal with the U.S. Postal Service.
A T Stewart Home - Fifth Avenue - NYC
Tags: a t stewart, allied department stores, Associated Dry Goods, Beauty, big box retail, City Stores, cosmetics, Department Store History, dina lokets, executive search firms, Fashion Institute, FEDERATED DEPARTMENT STORES, FIT, grand dames of retail, heidi plummer, john plummer, LATimes, New York Department Stores, New York History, New York Retail History, nrf, NYTimes, plummer & associates, plummer and associates, plummersearch.com, retail alumni, retail careers, retail executive recruiter, retail executive search, retail executive search firms, retail executive talent, retail executives, retail recruiter, retail talent, retailexecutivesearch.com, retailexecutivesearchfirms.com, retained retail executive search firms, Specialty retail, stores magazine, susan gill, Wannamakers, wsj, WWD
Posted in NEW YORK STORES, Retail Postcards | 9 Comments »
Friday, December 9th, 2011
ARNOLD CONSTABLE - FIFTH AVENUE - NEW YORK CITY
For years, the Arnold Constable & Company was known as the “oldest department store” in America. It served the ‘carriage trade’ of New York. Famous customers included the Astor’s, Vanderbilt’s, Roosevelt’s, and Mary Todd Lincoln. The company was known for bring the best French fashion to NYC.
The company was started in 1825 by Mr. Aaron Arnold, an immigrant from the Isle of Wright. Before he opened his store he had been working with James Hearn, founder of Hearn’s. Mr. Arnold’s first store was located at the corner of Canal and Mercer Streets, then the center for retail. In 1837, a vendor, James Constable, married Aaron’s daughter and then became a partner in the firm. That is when the name was changed to Arnold Constable.
In 1868 Arnold Constable opened a new store at Broadway and Nineteenth Streets in NYC. This put the store in the middle the new “Ladies’ Mile” shopping district. It was known as “the Palace of Trade”.
In 1914 the company incorporated with reported capital of $2.5m. That same year the company leased the former home of Frederick W. Vanderbilt and started plans for building a new store on Fifth Avenue at 40th Street. At this time it was clear that the shopping district was moving “uptown”.
In 1925, Arnold Constable merged with Stewart & Company which led to the expansion into the suburbs. The first suburban store opened in 1937 in New Rochelle, NY. Later, stores opened in Hempstead, Manhasset, and New Jersey.
In the 1960’s, the carriage trade retailer of New York started to face economic troubles. As sales declined, expenses were rising significantly. The company started closing the unprofitable suburban stores. In 1975, the store on Fifth Avenue closed. After 150 years, the Arnold Constable name disappeared. The company did continue to manage its no-name stores, a small specialty retailer offering men’s and women’s separates. This was later sold in the 1990’s to YM, Inc, a Canadian retail chain.
What happened???? Arnold Constable did not adjust to the newer times and merchandising systems. It continued to cater to a dying “carriage trade” customer and did not attract the younger customers.
I visited Arnold Constable in 1973 on a business trip to NYC. I was interested in comparing it to Bullock’s Wilshire and I. Magnin. To me it was clear that Arnold Constable did not know it was hostile to the younger customer. The store also looked dowdy and was not well merchandised. I was not surprised when the company closed a year later.
Tags: big box retail, defunct stores, Department Store History, department stores, dina lokets, executive search, executive search firms, fashion recruiting, fashion retail, heidi plummer, john plummer, national retail federation, New York Retail History, nrf, NY Times, plummer, plummer & associates, plummer and associates, Plummersearch, plummersearch.com, retail exectutive talent, retail executive search firms, retail headhunter, Retail History, retail recruiter, retail recruiting, retail talent, retained retail executive search firms, Specialty retail, stores, stores magazine, susan gill, USC, Womens Wear Daily, wsj, WWD
Posted in NEW YORK STORES, Retail Postcards | 7 Comments »
Tuesday, June 28th, 2011
Every industry segment gets smaller as you climb the ladder. For that very reason it is important that when you turn down an offer of employment, you do it in a fashion showing respect and a desire to keep in touch. You never know who might be your next boss and/or employer. So, no matter how upset you were with the offer or the scope of responsibilities, it is in your best interest to be respectful.
- Give the prospective employer a sincere reason why you are turning down the job offer. This must be done by phone not by voice message or e-mail. If you cannot afford to make the move, be upfront about it. If your spouse and family are against the move, you need to be specific as the prospective employer will want to know why this came up so late in the process. If you feel the role is too limited in scope, you need to let them know it. If you feel the financial condition of the employer is too shaky, you need to tell them that you cannot take the risk.
- Thank them for giving you consideration and making an offer. Show gratitude.
- Follow up by keeping in touch. Build a bridge; don’t let the bridge built at the offer fall apart.
In my years of human resources and executive recruiting, I have seen long-standing feuds between individuals which started over how an offer was declined. These feuds could have been avoided.
Tags: Apparel Careers, big box retail, department store careers, dina lokets, employment offer, employment offers, executive search, executive search firms, heidi plummer, john plummer, la times, national retail federation, nrf, NY Times, plummer & associates, plummer and associates, plummersearch.com, retail careers, retail employment, retail executive recruiters, retail executive search firms, retail search firms, retailexecutivesearch.com, retailexecutivesearchfirm.com, Specialty retail, susan gill, turning down employment offer, USC, Womens Wear Daily, WWD
Posted in Candidate Information | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011
RETAINING YOUR TOP TALENT AS THE ECONOMY IMPROVES
According to all the statistics I read, one in every three employees is desiring to change jobs when another opportunity comes along. Should every employer be concerned?
As the economy improves, executive search firms will be seeking the best talent for their clients. Top talent will be contacted and wooed with opportunities at other companies. This has been the way things work for the past fifty years and I expect it will continue for the next fifty years.
Just because 1/3 of executives are looking to move does not mean it should be of major concern. I feel the question each company should ask itself is … “who are the 1/3 willing to leave?” If your key and high potential executives are willing to leave, you have a problem. It is time for you to evaluate your key executives to make sure their compensation is in-line with competition and that you have the benefits and stock options in place to keep these executives motivated and owners in the company. At the same time, you need to let them know the importance they play in the company and the future they should expect.
On the other hand, if the one-third willing to leave are not your top team members, maybe this is not a bad thing. If they leave, it will give you an opportunity to recruit and/or develop top talent. Turnover at the bottom performance level often allows new stars to develop and flourish.
Organizations which compensate key employees well, that lock them in with strong benefits and stock option programs, and that offer a bright future, seldom lose their best executives. Executive recruiters know that!
Tags: Apparel Careers, benefits, big box retail, bonus plans, careers, catalog, Department Store History, dina lokets, direct marketing, drug stores, e-commerce careers, economy, executive search firms, food service careers, food service recruiters, jobs, john plummer, key executives, la times, m-commerce careers, mass merchants, modesto, national retail federation, nrf, NY Times, plummer & associates, plummersearch.com, retail careers, retail executive recruiters, retail executive search, retail executive search firms, retail executives, Retail History, retailalumni.com, retailexecutivesearch.com, retailexecutivesearchfirms.com, salary, Senior Executives, Specialty retail, stock options, stores magazine, supermarkets, susan gill, talent retention, talent turnover, unemployment, USC, wholesale careers, wsj, WWD
Posted in Talent Development/Education | No Comments »
Friday, June 17th, 2011
For years, consultants in executive search have been explaining the difference between contingency and retained executive search firms. It has always been hard to do without sounding self-serving. I have attached a definition of Executive Search from Wickipedia (June 17, 2011) which I believe makes the differentiation quite clear.
Which process a client chooses is the client’s decision. I have a bias. After years within a client company and years as a leader in executive search, it is clear that the retained approach is best for the recruitment of key executives. The retained process is more intensive, extensive, and results in candidates with the best fit. Retained search also best represtents the client’s brand.
Executive search
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (June 17, 2011)
Executive search is the consultative process of recruiting individuals to fill senior executive positions in organizations. Executive search may be performed by an organization’s board of directors, or by an outside executive search organization.
Executive search profession
Executive search is an extremely lucrative industry and successful search consultants can earn large sums. For this reason there is fierce competition to work in this sector. Generally the office is broken down into three functions: Business Development, Recruiting and Research. Generally the Business Development person receives the largest commission while the Researcher receives the smallest.
The executive search profession ranges in models from “Retained” search to “Contingency” search. Retained search firms are paid a retainer equal to one-third of the fee up front to launch the search process, a third of the fee thirty days from launch and the final third sixty days from launch. If the fee is fully paid before a candidate is hired, the retained firm continues its work until the search is concluded. Contingency search firms, on the other hand, receive their entire fee at the conclusion of the search process. Over the years, many contingency firms have begun receiving retainers while retained firms have expanded their models to include flat fees, capped fees, etc.
Search consultancies are often entrenched in particular market sectors. Their market sector networks are used along with various methods to seek candidates for a particular job. Normally the individuals are not actively seeking a new job. It is the job of the search consultant to approach these individuals with a view to taking them out of their current company and placing them in another, often a competitor.
The service is paid for by the client company or organization, not by the hired job candidate. Potential job candidates are identified, qualified and presented to the client by the executive search firm based upon fit with a written or verbal Job Specification developed in conjunction with the client. Assessing degree of potential fit of the candidate with the job specification is a key activity for the search firm, since the most common reason a search consultant is engaged by a client company is to save time and effort involved with identifying, qualifying and reviewing potential candidates for specific leadership positions.
It is common for a potential candidate to be identified by the search firm via a telephone call. Often the phone call is the result of a recommendation from someone inside the existing network of the search firm. Quality oriented search firms work hard at cultivating and continually updating their network of contacts so that when a search assignment is awarded they will be ready to start recruiting potential candidates. Another way to identify potential candidates involves search firm “research”, which is contacting targeted people in specific companies who appear to fit the job profile in some logical manner. Some of the best candidate referrals come from people who could be candidates for the job themselves but for any number of reasons are not interested at that particular time.[1]
Retained executive search firms
Retained executive search firms are firms paid on a retainer-structure that identify, assess, and recruit Corporate Officers, Board Members, C-level executives, Diversity Candidates, and other senior talent. There are large, global firms who engage in this activity, as well as regional “boutique” firms. Some smaller firms act together as a network, thus gaining global reach and being able to compete with the large integrated ones. Some firms specialize in specific industries (for example pharmaceutical, retail, IT) or functions (i.e. sales executives), while others are generalists.
Job seekers who qualify for senior-executive level searches often mistake executive recruiters for career transition, or “outplacement” specialists. Executive recruiters work for their client companies. They do not actively place out-of-work individuals. This would not only be a conflict of interest, it would also be financially unwise. A job seeker does not pay a recruiter when he lands a job. The client company pays the recruiting firm when it fills a position. This nuance is lost on many. It may be worthwhile to contact executive search firms if you qualify, but do not expect them to take time out of their schedule to talk with you or see you. They are driven by their specific assignments for their clients: they find people for roles, not roles for people. Executive search consultants can be “career makers” for some individuals, but for most, this will not be the way they will find their next role.
When choosing a firm, it is a good idea to consider carefully what you want from the relationship. While contingency firms offer a service with no money up front, they will often only work on those searches that can be executed quickly and do not have the time to focus on high-quality candidates. Another option is to hire one firm and give them an “exclusive contingency” arrangement so that the money is still paid at the end of the search, but there is only one firm working on the search. This gives the firm the benefit of time to truly focus on quality and the hiring manager is not flooded with resumes. A third option is to pay the firm an engagement fee. Generally firms with engagement fees are exclusive as well and then have more resources available to them to purchase additional research. This also moves the search to a “retained” level which brings a level of professionalism sought by many upper level candidates. At the retained level, a client could pay a “performance retainer” which means a payment to start the search, a payment when candidates are submitted and final payment when the candidate starts. These milestones are chosen due to the fact that the firm “performed”. The more traditional retainer agreements are time based and are set at specific intervals regardless of retainers.
Types of executive search firms
There are broadly two different types of Retained Executive Search firms in operation.
Global: These tend to cover numerous different sectors including financial services, life sciences, automotive, consumer, energy, pharmaceutical, telecommunications, technology, and media companies, as well as other industries. Such executive search companies will have many offices all over the world and the consultants will typically be split by which sector they are expert in. These firms are often public listed and may have over 100 offices.
Boutique: These tend to be more sector specific. That is to say that they will cover only one sector and within this sector, they may only look at certain aspects. For instance, there are a number of boutique firms that operate within financial services and these companies tend to look at senior positions (MD, Director and Vice President) within Investment Banking (M&A, Corporate Finance), Capital Markets (ECM & DCM), Sales, Trading, Research, Interest Rates, Credit, Equities, Derivatives, hedge funds and long-only asset management. As such, these firms would have one or more offices in the major financial centers across the globe; London, New York, Chicago, Dubai, Shanghai, Beijing, Mumbai, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Singapore. While the global firms may have a presence within these areas, they tend to cover board level positions within retail banking, asset & wealth management and insurance. However the larger global firms do periodically work within the capital markets arena
Tags: big box retail, contingency search, Department Store History, dina lokets, executive careers, executive search firms, fashion careers, food service careers, heidi plummer, john plummer, modesto, nrf, plummer & associates, plummer and assocaites, plummersearch.com, retail alumni, retail careers, retail executive recruiters, retail executive search firms, retailexecutivesearch.com, retained executive search, retained executive search firms, Specialty retail, stores magazine, susan gill, USC, Womens Wear Daily, WWD
Posted in Talent Development/Education | 2 Comments »
Wednesday, June 15th, 2011
Plummer & Associates recruits Ms. Kim Mason as the Director – Store Planning for Five Below. Ms. Mason had been the Senior Manager - Supply Chain for Office Depot.
Five Below is a privately held chain of discount stores found in a number of states. The store (as indicated by the name) sells products that cost no more than $5.00. The chain is aimed at teenagers and pre-teens, but have many products for mom and dad. The store was founded in October 2002.
Plummer & Associates, is based in New Canaaan, Connecticut and is known in the direct-to-consumer industry (retail, retail services, food service, restaurant, catalog, e-Commerce, m-Commerce, direct marketing/selling, and apparel wholesale) segment for the quality of its executive search services. For more information, we refer you to www.plummersearch.com.
Tags: dina lokets, executive search firms, FIT, heidi plummer, john plummer, LATimes, nrf, NY Times, pennsylvania, philadelphia, plummer & associates, plummer and associates, plummersearch.com, retail careers, retail executive recruiters, retail executive search, retail executive search firms, retail executives, retailexecutivesearch.com, retailexecutivesearchfirms.com, small box retail, Specialty retail, stores magazine, susan gill, toy retail, USC, wsj
Posted in Candidate Information, Talent Development/Education | No Comments »
Thursday, June 9th, 2011
Holiday Card 1904. Front Entrance
NEW YORK DEPARTMENT STORES – ABRAHAM & STRAUS
Abraham & Straus - Arial View - 1906
Founded in 1865 by Abraham Abraham and Joseph Wechsler in Brooklyn, New York, the company initially opened as Wechsler & Abraham on Fulton Street near Tillary. At this time, Brooklyn was a thriving community of its own; the Brooklyn Bridge had not yet been built. In the early 1880’s, the company bought and renovated an ornate cast iron building on Fulton between Hoyt Street and Gallatin Place. With continual expansion, the store eventually occupied the entire block. The building was equally ornate inside as depicted in some of the postcards shown below. A five-story courtyard with a skylight allowed daylight to show off the merchandise. Abraham & Straus became the retail showplace in New York. The last major renovation was between 1928 and 1930 when the architects Starrett & Van Vleck designed the new building facing Fulton Street in Art Deco style. This store still stands today but is now a Macy’s.
In 1893, the Straus family along with Simon Rothschild bought out the Wechsler interest in the company and the store was renamed Abraham & Straus. The Straus family also had controlling interest in R.H. Macy & Company in New York. The two retailers were not combined but did maintain a common buying office in Europe. During the 1910s, the Straus family separated their interest in the two stores, with Abraham & Straus going to one branch of the family, and Macy’s to the other. In April, 1912, Isidor and Ida Straus went down with the Titanic.
In 1929, Abraham & Straus, Bloomingdale’s, Filene’s and Lazarus (along with its subsidiary, Shillito’s) merged to form Federated Department Stores. At this time, Federated was located in Columbus, Ohio but later moved to Cincinnati. The merger gave each division the strength to weather economic storms and also created buying clout in the U.S. and Europe.
Family members ran Abraham & Straus until 1955. Walter Rothschild was President and Chairman until 1955, and was succeeded by Sidney Solomon, the first non-family member to lead the company.
In 1950, the company purchased the Loeser’s store in Garden City and converted it to Abraham & Straus. In 1952, the company built its first suburban store in Hempstead. That store was expanded over the years until it exceeded 400,000 square feet. The company continued expansion with stores in Manhasset, Smithtown, Babylon (later replaced), Monmouth (NJ), Paramus (NJ), White Plains (NY), Short Hills (NJ), King of Prussia (PA), Willow Grove (PA), and Manhattan.
Under the leadership of Walter Rothschild and Sidney Solomon, Abraham & Straus was the powerhouse of Federated Department Stores. The division contributed more earnings per share than any other division. For years it was known as the training ground for merchants for the retail industry. Many of the top retail CEO’s came from the A& S training program.
Unfortunately, Abraham & Straus also became the funding source for Federated Department Store’s divisions in the Sunbelt (Bullock’s, Burdines, Sanger-Harris, and Rich’s). Eventually the Brooklyn market declined as did Hempstead and Babylon. The new management team relied on a strategy of opening new stores to grow their way out of the problems created by the declining markets. New stores were built in White Plains and Short Hills, but neither was an immediate success. Then, A&S made the disastrous decision to open stores in the Philadelphia market (Willow Grove and King of Prussia). These stores worsened the situation. As a final fiasco, the division opened a new store near Herald Square in NYC, a store that never could be profitable. On top of all this, a new centralized distribution center was opened, intended to reduce expenses and to increase the selling space in each store. Through management bungling, this operation became a major problem as shortage increased dramatically chain wide. In addition, costs were far above projections and merchandise got stalled in the pipeline.
Outside Porte Cochere. 1909
The Court, Silver Department, 1904
What happened???
Atop all the management mistakes in the late 1970’s and 1980’s, the final blow came when Campeau, the real estate developer, bought Federated Department Stores and combined it with Allied Stores. This led to the combination of A&S with Jordan Marsh (Boston), operating out of the Brooklyn headquarters. In 1994, Federated Department Stores purchased bankrupt R.H. Macy & Co and in 1995, combined A&S with the Macy’s New York division, converting stores to the Macy’s brand or other divisions of Federated.
I first saw Abraham & Straus in the late 1960’s when it was a powerhouse. I was working at Bullock’s in Los Angeles and was asked to visit with A&S to gather information on some of their personnel policies and procedures. I was impressed. The customer traffic was unbelievable. The fashion displays were incredible as the volume justified the costs. I joined A&S in 1976 and it was then on a fast downhill slide. Management’s response was to take the business upscale. This new direction worked in Manhasset, Smithtown, Paramus and the smaller Garden City store but in the other stores the new direction was a disaster. In Brooklyn, for example, we added a Pappagallo shop and put $12 million into an upscale renovation of the Brooklyn store when in fact all that sold in front of the store were Jellies and incense on cardboard boxes. The employees lost confidence in management as customers objected to the new higher priced merchandise. Unions started organizing attempts because of separation of the associates from management. One day over 6,000 people demonstrated in support of the unions in front of the Brooklyn store. The store also became a magnet for criminals. Organized gangs came into the store to steal merchandise. One Christmas Eve a gang came into the jewelry department during business hours, broke all the cases and stole the majority of the merchandise.
A&S Rotunda .. 1904
Picture Gallery. 1907
The postcard collection primarily shows the store pre-1930 when it was grand. Like all the other cards in the Plummer Collection, I ask that you do not reproduce or copy any of these postcards without gaining my written permission.
Grocery Department. 1904
Grocery Department in 1907
I trust that you will feel comfortable to leave your comments about your history with A&S, either as a customer or as an employee. We need to preserve this important part of retail history.
Straus Family Summer Home. View 1 . 1907
Straus Family Summer Home . View 2. 1907
Anniversary Day Parade . Prospect Park. 1907 . Pub by A&S
Lawn Tennis Prospect Park . 1905 . pub A&S
Brooklyn Orphan Asylum . 1906. pub by A&S
A&S Rear View Showing Service Center 1904
Tags: A & S Alumni, A & S History, A&S, Abraham & Straus, Allied Stores, Associated Dry Goods, Beauty, big box retailers, bloomingdales, Brooklyn, carter hawley hale stores, City Stores, cosmetics, Department Store History, dina lokets, executive recruiting, executive searh fimrs, Fashion Institute, FEDERATED DEPARTMENT STORES, FIT, grand dames of retail, heidi plummer, john plummer, la times, macy's, Merchantile Stores, merchants, New York, New York Department Stores, New York History, New York Retail, nrf, NY Times, plummer & associates, plummer and associates, Plummersearch, plummersearch.com, retail careers, retail executive recruiters, retail executive search, retail executive search firms, retail executives, Retail History, retail recruiters, retailexecutivesearch.com, retailexecutivesearchfirms.com, Specialty retail, stores magazine, susan gill, USC, wsj, WWD
Posted in NEW YORK STORES, Retail Postcards | 37 Comments »
Friday, March 18th, 2011
Hale Bros. San Francisco - Pre-1906
HALE BROTHERS – SACRAMENTO
In 1880 the Criterion Store was opened by Prentice Cobb Hale and his two brothers. This store was located in downtown Sacramento. The next year the store and company was renamed Hale Brothers & Company. In 1896, the company incorporated under the name of Hale Bros. In 1887, the company established a buying office in New York headed by Marshall Hale. This store was known for offering value priced merchandise.
Hale Bros opened large stores in San Francisco and San Jose and several smaller stores in California’s smaller markets. In those days some of the stores included groceries in their merchandise mix. Each store was managed as a separate entity as systems were not sophisticated enough to have chain wide merchandising. The Sacramento store was last located at 9th and K Streets. The San Jose store was at the corner of 1st and San Carlos. The San Francisco store was first located at 989 Market Street. After the earthquake, the company built a new store at 901 Market Street in a neoclassical building designed by the Reid Brothers. It lost that store in a 1944 lease dispute with the owners of the land upon which the store was built. As a result, J.C.Penney moved into this prime location and Hale Bros was forced to take over the former J.C.Penney location adjacent to the enormous Emporium store. The foolish negotiations by Hale Bros resulted in the company opening in an older building while paying a much higher rent.
In 1949, Hale Bros. acquired their Sacramento rival, Weinstocks Lubin & Co. In 1949, Hale Bros. negotiated an all-stock merger with Los Angeles based Broadway Department Stores, then the largest and most aggressively growing chain in Southern California. The result was Broadway-Hale Stores. Prentice Hale became the Chairman and Ed Carter (Broadway) became President.
All stores were closed by 1968. Hale Brothers was facing increased competition from the Emporium and aggressive specialty retailers. Consumers were moving to the malls while Hale Bros stores were in downtown markets. Since the Emporium was merged into Broadway – Hale in 1969, I have to believe they knew that Hale Bros stores would not be relevant in that combined company. At the time, the only people crying over the loss were the employees of Hale Bros. The store was not missed.
The Sacramento store has now been restored to its original look; the unsightly aluminum sheathing has been removed. The San Jose store now houses a building and loan office. The San Francisco store was empty for years after J.C. Penney left San Francisco. It now houses big box retail venues.
What happened????…. In the case of Hale Bros you cannot blame Carter Hawley Hale for its demise. Instead, blame goes directly to the company’s management. The loss of the San Francisco store lease killed that store. They ended up with a store that was old and in decline and they paid more in rent. They just could not compete with the more customer friendly Emporium next door. Customers were also looking for more fashion but Hale Brothers did not offer it. The biggest problem was that the customers were moving to mall shopping environments and Hale Bros stores were only located in downtown venues.
I was taken to the Hale Bros stores in both Sacramento and San Francisco. In Sacramento, the Weinstock’s store was far more exciting. In San Francisco, going to Hale Bros was torture in comparison to the Emporium, the White House, or the City of Paris. Then, when Macy’s San Francisco woke-up, it was all over for Hale Bros.
I hope that all of you who know Hale Bros better than I do will be able to tell your stories in the comments section below. I would especially like to hear more about how the real estate mogul, Louis Lurie, out foxed Prentice Hale.
Hale Bros. - San Francisco - Destruction by 1906 Earthquake and Fire
Hale Bros. - San Francisco - Rebuild after Earthquake and Fire
Hale Bros. - San Francisco - New Store on Market - 1927
Hale Bros. - San Jose - Scene from 1932
Hale Bros. - San Francisco - First Floor - no date
Hale Bros. - San Francisco - Pompeian Court/Restaurant - 1914
These Hale Bros. postcards are part of the Plummer & Associates collection. Please do not copy or reproduce without permission from John Plummer.
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