“World’s Largest Store” (Macy’s)
The "World's Largest Store" is, of course, Macy's in Herald Square. However, it appears that Sear's in Chicago once held the title in the early 1900s.
22 February 1925, Chicago Daily Tribune, pg. E10:
Take this chance to outfit the kiddies from head to toe at big savings - savings that only the tremendous pruchasing power of Sears, ROebuck & Co., the World's Largest Store, makes possible.
(Homan Ave. and Arthington - ed.)
10 February 1934, New York Times, pg. 5:
This is by way of reminding you that the World's Largest Store is as snug as the inside of a caribou's hide..which our widely travelled Bureau of Standards tells us is the most comfortable cold weather spot known.
http://www.macys.com/store/about/history/index_my.jsp
Always the innovator, Macy's is known for several firsts that revolutionized the retail industry. Macy's was the first retailer to promote a woman, Margaret Getchell, to an executive position, making business history. Macy's pioneered such revolutionary business practices as the one-price system, in which the same item was sold to every customer at one price, and quoting specific prices for goods in newspaper advertising. Known for its creative merchandising, Macy's was the first to introduce such products as the tea bag, the Idaho baked potato and colored bath towels. Macy's was also the first retailer to hold a New York City liquor license.
By November 1902, the store had outgrown its modest storefront and moved uptown to its present Herald Square location on Broadway and 34th Street, establishing an attraction for shoppers from around the world. With the store's 7th Avenue expansion complete in 1924, Macy's Herald Square became the “World's Largest Store,†with over one million square feet of retail space.
By 1918, R.H. Macy & Co. was generating $36 million in annual sales. Yet, the prosperity of the retailer was never more apparent than when the company went public in 1922 and began to open regional stores and take over competing stores. In 1923, the Toledo-based department store LaSalle & Kock was acquired; the next year, Davison-Paxton in Atlanta was acquired and in 1936, the Newark-based Bamberger's was purchased.
To help celebrate their new American heritage, Macy's immigrant employees organized the first Christmas Parade in 1924. The procession featured floats, bands, animals from the zoo and 10,000 onlookers, beginning a time-honored tradition now known as the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade®.
22 February 1925, Chicago Daily Tribune, pg. E10:
Take this chance to outfit the kiddies from head to toe at big savings - savings that only the tremendous pruchasing power of Sears, ROebuck & Co., the World's Largest Store, makes possible.
(Homan Ave. and Arthington - ed.)
10 February 1934, New York Times, pg. 5:
This is by way of reminding you that the World's Largest Store is as snug as the inside of a caribou's hide..which our widely travelled Bureau of Standards tells us is the most comfortable cold weather spot known.
http://www.macys.com/store/about/history/index_my.jsp
Always the innovator, Macy's is known for several firsts that revolutionized the retail industry. Macy's was the first retailer to promote a woman, Margaret Getchell, to an executive position, making business history. Macy's pioneered such revolutionary business practices as the one-price system, in which the same item was sold to every customer at one price, and quoting specific prices for goods in newspaper advertising. Known for its creative merchandising, Macy's was the first to introduce such products as the tea bag, the Idaho baked potato and colored bath towels. Macy's was also the first retailer to hold a New York City liquor license.
By November 1902, the store had outgrown its modest storefront and moved uptown to its present Herald Square location on Broadway and 34th Street, establishing an attraction for shoppers from around the world. With the store's 7th Avenue expansion complete in 1924, Macy's Herald Square became the “World's Largest Store,†with over one million square feet of retail space.
By 1918, R.H. Macy & Co. was generating $36 million in annual sales. Yet, the prosperity of the retailer was never more apparent than when the company went public in 1922 and began to open regional stores and take over competing stores. In 1923, the Toledo-based department store LaSalle & Kock was acquired; the next year, Davison-Paxton in Atlanta was acquired and in 1936, the Newark-based Bamberger's was purchased.
To help celebrate their new American heritage, Macy's immigrant employees organized the first Christmas Parade in 1924. The procession featured floats, bands, animals from the zoo and 10,000 onlookers, beginning a time-honored tradition now known as the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade®.