Retailer

Nostalgic Retail Series #6 - MERVYN'S

Started by Mervin G. Morris in 1949 in San Lorenzo, California, the company grew to almost 200 stores, mostly in the West. The mid-scale department store grew to the US’s 83rd largest retailer in 2005.

As it expanded outside of California, Mervyn’s ran into trouble. Was it fast growth, merchandising, service or all of the above?

On October 17, 2008, the company announced that it would liquidate its assets through a Chapter 7 filing. All remaining locations were closed by the end of the year despite attempts to reorganize during bankruptcy.

The Morris family, having bought back intellectual property rights to the company in 2009, announced plans to relaunch Mervyn's as an internet-based enterprise. [Wikipedia] The proposed revival came to fruition many years later as Mervyn’s is now an online store that sells overstocks from other retailers.

Sales Was Never the Warning Light

I walked into a Nordstrom Rack recently, and a large chunk of the front of the store was sealed off. It wasn't a remodel or a pop-up. It was boxes, stacked and waiting for pickup customers. That space is still in the denominator of the store'

𝐍𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐠𝐢𝐜 𝐑𝐞𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐥 𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 #60 - 𝐌𝐎𝐕𝐈𝐄 𝐆𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐑𝐘 + 𝐇𝐎𝐋𝐋𝐘𝐖𝐎𝐎𝐃 𝐕𝐈𝐃𝐄𝐎

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘳𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢'𝘴 𝘕𝘰. 2 𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘰 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯 𝘎𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘢, 𝘈𝘭𝘢𝘣𝘢𝘮𝘢. If you grew up in a small Southern town, your video store was probably a Movie Gallery. Empty boxes on the wall, the tapes behind the counter, a bin of Sega and Nintendo games by the register, and a late fee waiting for you on Monday. In 1985,

Nostalgic Retail Series #59: W.T. GRANT

Grants sat somewhere between the five-and-dime and the department store. It had a Bradford House restaurant inside and Bradford brand electronics in the back. Near the end, the clerk at the register was told to hand you a credit application whether you asked for one or not. William

The Household Has a Rent Roll Too

In 2024 the average American household spent $1,993 on vehicle insurance and $1,985 on all apparel and services combined. Shoes, coats, work clothes, school clothes, alterations, dry cleaning, the whole category. Car insurance edged it out by eight dollars. That number comes from the BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey,

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Sales Was Never the Warning Light

𝐍𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐠𝐢𝐜 𝐑𝐞𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐥 𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 #60 - 𝐌𝐎𝐕𝐈𝐄 𝐆𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐑𝐘 + 𝐇𝐎𝐋𝐋𝐘𝐖𝐎𝐎𝐃 𝐕𝐈𝐃𝐄𝐎

Nostalgic Retail Series #59: W.T. GRANT

The Household Has a Rent Roll Too