The Decline of Woolworth...What Happened?
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- čas přidán 11. 09. 2018
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Woolworth was one of the largest retailers of their time and today are completely gone, in the U.S. anyway. This video profiles their rise and fall, while trying to provide reasons for all of it.
*Note: The scope of this video is limited to their presence in the U.S. They were also big in the U.K. but that's a story for a different day.
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I was born in 1933, so you KNOW I was a Woolworths Fan. I was 4 in 1937, the first time I went to one alone. I lived 'around the corner' from a Woolworth's 5&!0 on Third Ave in NYC (under the EL). Papa was home, recovering from an illness and mama went to work. Papa said I talked too much and gave me a few coins (very few) to go get something to play with 'quietly.' I even remember what I bought. A book of "cut out dolls and various clothes. With a nickel or a dime I bought that book, and for a similar amount I bought a blunt ended children's scissor to cut out the doll clothes. That 'cut out book' started me on the road to becoming an "Anglo-phile" because the book was called, "The Little Princesses" and was about Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret. I've loved them and everything about British royalty ever since. As I said, I was 4 years old... Elizabeth was 10 or 11 and Margaret was around 7. Elizabeth is now Queen and in her nineties, Margaret has passed away, and I am 85. I've missed Woolworths ever since it closed. Especially the lunch counters. In 1964, after we'd done most of our 40 day trip around America, we were in Selma, Alabama, saw a Woolworths, and decided to h ave lunch there. To our chagrin... tho' the counter was there... the seats were gone.... to avoid "sit-ins" and we had to eat standing up. Afterwards, we saw a group of black people coming across a bridge in a protest march. Being from NYC, it was strange to us, but we were "With the Marchers" and not the people who were not in favor of what they were doing. I do not recall when Woolworths left our town of Ridgewood NJ. But I don't need to "remember" missing Woolworths. I've never stopped missing that store. Tho' I'm rather excited that a Dollar General store just moved onto the property next to my house. This is a wonderful convenience for me.... now, an old woman of 85. This new store is the closest to my beloved 5&10 and I love having it here.... However... It isn't Woolworth's. So I still miss that beloved place to shop.
I loved hearing the first hand account of these events. My grandmother worked at Sears and K-mart and they were a large part of her and our lives. Sad to say both of them have shut down this year in our town (Lake Charles, la).
My grandmother has long passed away... she would be around your age and I would give anything to hear how life was through her eyes again.
Thanks for the wonderful thoughts and telling your story.
So blacks shut it down?
morelli tech
No
I love this story :)
Damn you actually get to walk into a company that I couldn’t even get into myself and lived to tell the tale.
I wish I had a time machine to see this.
My mother raised four kids as a Waitress, then counter manager at Woolworth Cafeteria always wearing her white uniform.. every Friday I would bring the personal grocery cart to meet her for the A&P or Nationals trip after work.. I would have a tuna club sandwich and the "Famous" Woolworth lemon cheese cake.. sometimes getting their Banana split instead if I popped a balloon with a free coupon inside.. it was the 60's and a wonderful time being part of Woolworth with a hard working mother.. miss her..
Nice story, I remember Woolworth from the 80's in NYC.
I had a similar experience in the 50’s.
UncleHank Me, too. My best friend Joanie and I had lunch once every week at our local Woolworth ‘s: a large hamburger with fresh lettuce and tomato, French Fries, and a frosted mug of root beer. All for 55 cents! Boy, was it good! The last 5 cents went for the tip! Big spenders!
Single people shouldn't try to raise kids, let alone 4. That is cruel to subject children to such a disadvantaged upbringing.
@@TFrills you're an idiot. Plenty of single parents out there doing a great job.
They were awesome in the 80's. They were like a better version of Dollar General but with a lunch counter and pets. I will always remember their toy section
All the 5 & 10s. Murphy's, Kresge's, Grant's, McCrory's.....
My downtown had a Woolworth's, McCrory's, Newberry's and W.T. Grant's store when I was young. McCrorys was the last to go when they folded. The Newberry's was two stories and a basement with a lunch counter and restaurant and big candy counter where they scooped it out of bins. As a kid I loved the toy department and the pet department where they had some kind of a loud bird for years. They even sold piranhas!
They had everything including the first escalator in town. Sadly it burned in 1973 and didn't reopen.
the scale difference between the two is immense
When I lived in Chicago I used to go there with my mom.
They were certainly awesome in the 60s and 70s Michael Coughlin
I worked for FW Woolworth from 1969 until 1976. I started as a "clean-up boy" and ultimately became a store manager at 7th and Broadway in downtown Los Angeles. I also spent a three year stint at a Woolco store in La Mirada, CA. We were the 4th largest retailer in the world and the largest food service corporation in the world. Woolco was definitely the beginning of the end for FWW. Many of the departments were leased out - footwear, men's clothing, furniture, automotive, jewelry and paint. There were relatively few Woolco stores built while K-Mart was saturating the retail market and soon their sales overtook not only FWW but ultimately the retail giant of its day, Sears. Another Woolworth blunder was their attempt to open super stores in the enclosed malls that were so popular in the '70's. Great video. Thanks for the memories (even though some of it is painful for me!)
Maybe you knew my Dad? He managed a Woolworths in Las Vegas from 1954-1956, then after a brief stint in the Army, a Scottsdale, AZ store from about 1960-1968, then he managed the San Francisco store on the corner of Market and Powell until it closed in the early 90s. Kendall was his last name.
I remember Woolworth's cafeteria. Yes, the store had a diner in the back. We used to order the hot dog platter. LOL
Some of the larger Woolworths in South Africa have cafeteria type restaurants that, like the parent company, emphasize fresh produce and good quality ingredients.
The Woolworth's lunch counters played a role in the civil rights movement. The ones in the south were sites of protests over segregation.
Exactly. The store and it’s diner area was iconic.
Sams club?
What was the "hot dog platter?" i only ate grilled cheese or hamburgers there.
The hospital in my town has a lunch counter that looks exactly like the lunch counter at Woolworths. And they still charge 1960's prices. It's like going back in time.
Wow! That sounds so cool. I’ve always wished stores would charge the prices from their debut once a year.
@@Natalia-hf3et There'd be lines out the door.
Where do you live?
Natalia Ayasha Ciccone F I used to live by what was once a pharmacy but is now just the restaurant with a lunch counter that would do exactly this.
Where is this place
Growing up I loved Woolworths. Spent a lot of time there when I was a teenager, their makeup selection was awesome, My friends and I would sometimes skip a class and go eat at the lunch counter. I actually cried when they closed. So many memories.
When I was a kid during the 60's my parents used to take me to Woolworths to get school supplies every year. I would also go there and buy model cars, air planes to put together.
But my Mom worked for Sears so all of our new school clothes came from there. I hope I never see another pair of Tough Skin jeans during my entire life. Our house looked like a Sears show room. And all of the appliances were of course, you guessed it! Kenmore, washer and dryer, stove, dishwasher etc. Now Sears is going away with Woolworths too. They have been fighting bankruptcy now for years. One of my family members owned a Been Franklin store, a competetior of Woolworths back during the 60's and 70's. I don't know what ever became of it.
My Grandma dragged me out of Ben Franklin by one ankle when I was about 5 or 6. Not that I was a spoiled rotten brat having a tantrum or anything as I was a perfect child. (/sarc) I bought dumb stuff for my $1.00, like that paddle with a ball and elastic string (only child, gotta do whatcha gotta do). Somehow it always turned into a weapon that paddled my perfect child behind... This happened more than once, it would indicate I am a slow learner.
As a kid in the 1970s, what I remember most about Woolworth was something you didn't mention... the food. They had a little food counter and stools and order things like milkshakes, grill ham and cheese sandwiches, etc. In the 1990s, I worked at JC Penney at the local mall and the mall also had a Woolworth. So my lunch break often involved running down to Woolworth for a cheese dog. By that point, business was already really bad for Woolworth, but I still remember they made the best cheese dogs around... Just sitting here thinking about it, I'm wishing I could have one, even though it's been decades.
I know!!! It's awesome they used to not let blacks sit at the counter!
I remember those days myself. Who knows what new stores will be around in fifty years and what stores that are around today will be gone. The Walmart haters think Walmart drove the neighborhood stores out of business, but that is capitalism. businesses open and businesses close. If Walmart lose their focus and stop serving the customer they will also be gone. The same for Amazon.
@@marcliuzza317 Don't blame Woolworth. Blame the Democrat party and their Jim Crow laws. It was the government that fostered segregation, not the business.
Same here, still remember Woolworths in Montgomery mall MD from my childhood memories
I rember the food counter in the 50's loved the mashed potatoes & brown gravy. Loved the photo booths. Good day's too bad kids will not be able to experience this.
Thank you for this. My father was a Woolworth company man. He started in the stock room and moved through the ranks. When he was drafted in the 50's they held a job for him. He went right into managing a store when he returned. We used to go to the Christmas Party at the Woolworth building each year and play in his office while we waited for Santa to arrive. Eventually, he helped shut Woolco down in the Northeast. It was not fun as they made him responsible for security. He was there when Woolworth finally shut down. I remember how proud he was to work at Woolworth when I was a kid in the late 60's. He was a buyer by that time and would explain how they imported goods and the rigorous quality control over the process. By the late 80's early 90's he would just shake his head when he read articles about Walmart and say, it's like they read our manuals and our management forgot how to execute it. - Paul Maurer
I recall playing on an organ keyboard when I was ten. I played by ear and played Silent Night. Upon completion applause rang out from dozens of patrons and employees. It was a fond memory. 52 years later and hundreds of original songs I've yet to learn to read sheet music and consider that Christmas time my introduction to music.
Thanks Woolworth
The thing that set Woolworth apart was they were selling all new products but you couldn’t get a pair of Levi’s but you could get wranglers. I remember them in the late 70’s - early 80’s. They were indeed unique. They had a lunch counter where you could get sandwiches, hamburgers, fries, for about half the price of fast food, and it was all fresh. Mom could send the kids to look around while she had a cup of coffee. Just a whole different atmosphere! Wish they were still around!
I miss Woolworth .they had everything. Woolworths was so relaxing to go shopping..
They had everything... Too much money tied up in that everything!
The lunch counter! Burgers & fries after you shopped!! Memories 💚💌
Woolworth's is bigger and better in Australia
@@craigham6081 Lucy Australia to have a Woolworths...
@@lalani888blue were they good?
My dad told me that Woolworth's lunch counter had the best cheeseburgers he ever ate. He also still has his 45-rpm copy of "Hey Jude" that he bought there for 67 cents.
I remember going into a Woolco in the 1980's to buy Prince's album, Purple rain, and agonizing over whether to get it on LP for 9.99 or cassette for 11.99. And renting the movie in the $1 bin at the video store. (I chose the LP, and it was awesome!)
i use to go to the woolworths on sutter street in stockton ca and buy my 16 magazines and other stuff and the lunch counter was great. their apple pies were great and their toasted grill cheese sandwiches were all served with a smile by helen the gal behind the counter mr woolworth was a smart man with a great Idea and yes i am familiar with the five and dime they even had bikes and hardware too in our stockton store
They were sort of on the decline when I was growing up in the 70s and 80s. But remember the lunch counter as well and it was a treat to be taken there as a kid. The coke had a weird taste because they would mix it there, but it was a unique taste I missed. Always would get the grilled cheese with those crinkle cut fries.
Great malts!
The coke is better when they mix it from the syrup and seltzer separately. The bottled one is too fizzy.
I was an assistant manager at the first Woolworth store in Lancaster PA from 1980-1983. I saw first hand the demise of the Woolco discount chain and the slow death of the Woolworth variety store chain. I think the Dollar General type stores are the legacy of the 5 & 10 variety store model.
I learned a lot about business from FW Woolworth and I am glad I had the opportunity to work for the company.
it's still there in another multiverse
Woolworth is still alive in Germany. I did a little research and found out that Woolworth Germany is far bigger than I thought and they seem to be doing well apart from pandemic caused problems but those hit all competing stores as well. At present they have 450 stores running and the goal is to expand to 800. They started as a branch of the American stores, opening the first shop 1927 in Bremen. It is a complicated story from then on as well. They went through management buyout in 1998, bancrupcy in 2009 and a lot of reorganisation. The concept is the same, kinda German version of a five and dime, must be the cheapest of the traditional departement stores in Germany. I hope Company Man will cover Woolworth Germany as well, just to find out why they survived in Germany but not in USA and UK.
I'm old enough to remember Woolworth's!
So am I, but the last Woolworths owned department store closed in the 1990s, so that's not saying much. Walmart & Target aren't much different, except they don't serve their own food, although they usually have a fast food concession of some sort.
What was it like? I hear they sold food and games and knick nacks. Like mini-malls.
@@tomhill3248 A lot like Dollar General stores but with a lunch counter. Sort of scaled down Walmart. Other five and dime stores as they were called even had a pet department where they sold birds and fish. Clothing, toys, household items.
@@robinlillian9471 Target serves their own food.
Me too! I miss them.
Woolworth's "Five 'n Dime" store concept is the "Dollar Store" concept of today.
Woolworths could've survived as a dollar store. I think they're better than dollar stores of today
I am UK, I remember talking one day, to the manager in our local store. He complained vociferously to me that he was overburdened with a massive choice of stock, so he never got the mix right.
yet Woolworth was cool...
Woolworths was so much cleaner than dollar stores. All the dollar stores I’ve been in are filthy for the most part
The five and dimes had better quality merchandise.
I started with the Woolworth Company as a store janitor at age 16 in 1983. I was there at the end as a store manager in 1997. The downfall was not the competition since the stores were in malls and downtown areas. Woolworth Stores were left to die on the vine by poor upper management. Stores were never updated. Management were more concerned with the specialty stores. (Kinney, Foot Locker, Champs, San Francisco Music Box) Those chains had much higher profit per square foot. Also customers no longer shopped in downtowns and moved to the suburbs. One hidden fact. The Woolworth retirement system owned the properties of most non shopping mall locations. The system would lease the property to the Company for pennies. Today most of the properties are still owned by Woolworth. Frank Woolworth believed in buying the property for his stores and that continued after his death.
I used to go to Woolthworth with my mom all the time when I used to live in Los Angeles. We always went to the one on Broadway in Downtown L.A. I still remember it fondly. She always bought me so many toys there and always two slices of pizza. I remember Woolworth and this other store that looked like it called Newberry. I was amazed when I found out years ago that Foot Locker is actually Woolworth. I would say Woolworth's demise is the same as KMart. You gotta update yourself throughout the years with store appearance and promos to stay attractive and relevant to your consumer. Alot of these stores like Sears and Kmart just became dingy lit places that never changed with the times. Thanks for the video. Brings back good memories.
I remember shopping at Woolworth as a kid. It was like a little step back in time. I don't recall a lot but I do remember them selling goldfish.
Parakeets and turtles, too.
They sold live Turtles too !
It's been my experience that when a store makes you feel like you stepped back in time, no matter how much fun that is, it's always an indicator that they're about to go out of business soon.
I went to buy my hamster supplies in the early 90’s. I miss the place.
@@clintnovaclaw Yeah, what is it about that store that just made it seem so much more fun than other stores? It wasn't really that much different than any other store, really.
Woolworth was ALWAYS my favorite store at which to shop! And sadly it just disappeared many years ago. They had WONDERFUL things!
playerpianogal they sure did my friend
As a child in NYC & NJ our family visited Woolworths for fun. Of course we bought things. The best time was when my dad, brother and I were in the pet section where they sold little turtles, frogs, hamsters and gerbils. My dad said "you guys keep your hands off these animals. You could get bit." As good little boys we did obey our dad. My brother and I soon lost interest and turned our backs and walked away. Within 10 seconds we heard "shit!" Low and behold the hamster had got hold of my father's thumb and there was blood everywhere! The manager freaked out while my brother and I lost it and broke out laughing which made my father angry and embarrassed at the same time. Do you think there's a lesson here?
Woolworths is still around. its corporate successor is called Foot Locker. I'm sure that you've heard of it.
lol my favorite caust i use to get my hot fudge sundae or a banna split
I loved the hot dogs at t he soda fountain!
As many of you who are watching this video will remember in the 1950s as a child,
you go into the Woolworth store and look at all the toys
the old "five-and-dime"....
Great memories...
I was in college when they closed. I was hired to help dismantle three stores, the Allentown, Easton and Bethlehem stores. My job was to take apart displays, shelving units, took apart the restaurants, etc. I have the original under-the-overhang sign for the Easton Store, which was in a strip shopping center. I also have the little price display cards from the Bethlehem store, which was an awesome store, one of the original downtown ones with the creaky old floors, long lunch counter, it was something. Depressing to close the stores down but I am glad I had the opportunity to work for them and get to preserve a few pieces of the history.
The Five and Dime stores sound like today's "$1" stores. Maybe they should have gone that route.
I think they did.
My town had a few 5 and dimes open until sometime in the 80s. Now we have 8 dollar stores.
The dollar stores are ironically much cheaper than the 5 and dimes were at the end. At least Dollar Tree. Not the shitty "we price everything in dollars so it's a dollar store lol" ones which seem to account for most of the rest.
They tried that in the 90's. It didn't work out with all of the other dollar stores.
That's actually the closest thing to what I remember Woolworth's being, at least the one I went to in the early/mid 90s! A Dollar Tree/Family Dollar/Big Lots kind of place!
As a child, when money was very tight, a trip to Woolworths was something to always look forward to.
Besides the fact that everything was priced affordably, it’s items were not necessarily cheap. The household items were always useful, the jewelry and makeup and accessory counters always had something your savings could reach and someone on hand to offer good service.
Many inexpensive yet hard to find elsewhere items, could be hidden if you looked.
Then there was the layaway plan, that also afforded a budget a most needed item.
Sort of like reverse credit where you paid over time for an item before you got to take it home.
The most fun was the ‘lunch counter’ where the price of soup, pie, sandwhiches or a milk shake for a hungry shopper, made from fresh ingredients, was always within reach.
I worked for Woolworths for about 8 years as , first a waitress, and later, as a food servise manager. I enjoyed it. You never mentioned the fact that they had counter food service with great food and deserts. I even remember, as a child, my Mom would take me and my sister and brother to have a turkey dinner on special occasions. They are great memories.
I remember The Woolworth in Huntington Park, California. Love it as a kid & enjoyed it with my best friend, Nora, during our high school years. We felt like such grown ups, grabbing a bite to eat after a shopping trip down Pacific. Thanks for the story Company Man.
Best lunch counter this took me back when I was 12 ,coolest toys ever
I bought my first train set from there, my grandmother loved going to Woolworth. It was a Amtrak train set good memories!
Swear I just remember getting all my alien movie action figures there for cheap like $5
The stores always smelled like popcorn and chewing gum rubbed around with a leather sole shoe !
YEESSS!! The lunch counter. Whenever my mother would go shopping we'd stop at Woolworth on Lincoln Ave. in Chicago. And I always knew what that meant..hamburgers and cokes at the lunch counter. Wow..the memories.
One of the very first sit ins for civil rights was at a Woolworth store
Imagine opening a store for only two hundred dollars.
That was back in the 19th century, the dollar went further back then.
even a 10 x 10 pop up, with walls and such, cost more than $200
@Pat Burke the government would be on your bones in a flash.
“You either die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the villain” that quote aged too well
I remember Woolco quite fondly. It was a huge store with departments for everything. You could literally be going to a particular Woolco for several years and still discover a department that you never knew existed. Of course in terms of the business maybe that was actually part of the problrm...
It's vaguely weird to think Sears and K-mart were kicking their asses given Sears and K-mart classic cases of self-destruction, now.
How can you talk about Woolworths and not even mention the lunch counters?
My favorite thing was a hot dog at the lunch counter that my Mom would buy for me. They were the only place with that New England style bun that you butter and grill on the outside of the bun for that toasty goodness.
Oh and my first job. Part time after school. The hot dog was better.
OMG, that hot dog was the best- that toasted bun and the special sauce, like tartar sauce but less tangy. My mom was a cook and my two sisters worked the counter at the Woolworth's in the town where we lived. My favorite lunch was the hot dog, fries, and a coke. Every once in a while, I was allowed to get a chocolate malt. Wonderful memories, those!
You had a lunch counter? We had nothing like that in the UK... we had pick and mix sweets?! Still miss it though
Now this is over 50 years ago and I was just a little kid but I seem to remember that they had some sort of counter top machine that they used to butter the rolls with before they put them on the grill. I think it was some type of little rotating drum and the lady would hold the bun to it for just a second or so. I remember thinking 'They got a special machine just to butter rolls?'. Seems like a dream and it could be because I've never seen anything like it again.
Because he's not too bright
I have good memories of Woolworth's as a child (1960s and 70s), especially going to the lunch counter with my mom. Fast forward to today, Woolworth's are gone, yes, but the niche once occupied by five-and-tens is now the desmense of so-called "dollar stores" like Dollar General and Family Dollar, which are trashy versions of the old idea.
That's exactly what I'm thinking, that Family Dollar General are the 5 and Dime of today. Family Dollar and Dollar General try to hard to be like a mini Wal-mart. They are good for running in to grab a couple of things. Around here, in North Carolina, we have Rose's. They are closer to the what I remember a Woolworth's and S.S. Kresge being like, when I was a kid. They almost have that smell about them, too.
Six Letters, I've been in a Rose's before and I agree, it seemed a lot like Woolworth's, except no lunch counter. Where I live, Dollar General and Family Dollar are pretty trashy, and I try to avoid them, but I'd shop at Rose's if it were nearby.
@@Robert_St-Preux Dollar General opens in the middle of absolutely nowhere that Walmart won't go. Nothing usable for me, same as Dollar Tree. Remember Dollar Tree, Dollar General fought over Family Dollar with Dollar Tree winning😆
I've been in a Rose's here in Maryland - that one looked basically like a discount clothing store, though.
+Christina Cope Hey, you never know when you'll need something from Dollar Tree. I was having moisture in parts of my basement recently. I went to a hardware store to buy Damprid, but they were sold out. The price tag on the shelf showed it would have been $11. I went to Dollar Tree, where they had their generic equivalent of Damprid for just $1. That was an amazing deal. While I was there, I impulsively bought freeze-dried fruit. The freeze-dried fruit contained no added sugar, and cost less than at a regular grocery store.
Woolworth transforming into Foot Locker blew my mind, I never knew that
Sad to know that 40 or 50 years from now (2060-2070) people won't fond memories of stores like Woolworth, Sears, Radio Shack , Toys R Us, etc because today there is nothing like them at all. BTW, I love the design of their old time store fronts of Woolworth and even the modern/art deco look of Woolco too.
remember, they are in now a separate multiverse apart from now
I'm 59 & i remember Woolworths, I used to shop there a lot in the middle 70's -late 80's.they had the Best Banana Splits ever !!!! Our local Woolworth closed in the late 80's, around 1989 or so in Gastonia, NC. I really miss Woolworth.
Woolworths is still going strong in Australia. They alongside Coles are the biggest supermarket chain here. Thankfully we don’t have Walmart.
Shane McKenna Woolworths Australia was never related to Woolworths America Or UK
walmart sels guns
Wow you guys don’t have Walmart?! I’m honestly shocked.
The UK has a Walmart, except here it's called ASDA (with no guns ofc).
I remember seeing a Woolworths when I was visiting New Zealand. I thought it was the old department store like the ones back in the States, but it was actually a supermarket.
I remember seeing a Woolworth in Germany in 2010 which blew my mind considering they've long closed in my area in Philadelphia. Good memories there... now it's a dollar store,kinda ironic
I LOVED Woolworth and some of my best childhood memories were made at their "soda fountain" & having a banana split with my Grandma. We spent hours "window shopping" back in the day (the 60s). Woolworth fountain also turned out quite the cheeseburger.
American Woolworth: Dead
British Woolworth: Dead
Australian Woolworths: One of the largest and most successful companies in the country.
Therefore, I conclude that the reason Woolworth died was because they didn't have the "s" on the end.
Could well be, numerology makes a difference, and they would have a new date of founding.
you forgot about mexico wool worth pleader iin the market
The UK company was actually a division of F. W. Woolworth Company in the US. The Australian one was never affiliated in any way.
Same. In South Africa we added the 's' and they're doing well.
México Woolworth: alive and kicking
I will always miss Woolworth's. We used to go to the soda counter after school and could get an order of french fries and a cherry coke for 35 cents. It was also a great pick-up joint for teens in that era. Guys who had a crush on you would offer to pay for our after-school treat. It was so much fun to browse the cosmetics aisle. They had everything, and fragrances. They didn't mind if we tried out the samples and just had affordable merchandise.Until the 80's there was still one Woolworth's open but it wasn't the same. They'd been bought out by OSCO Drug. It was so sad to see them go.
It was a treat to go there. Even the small mall outlets were good. They had everything including birds and goldfish!
You should do a video on the old mall store, Natural Wonders, that went out of business, I think, about 20 years ago. It was a really popular gift store in malls all over the U.S. They sold all kinds of science related toys and gadgets. No mall visit was ever complete without a visit to that store. They had all their merchandise out on display and there were always tons of people in there playing with the stuff. The store always had such a cool atmosphere. It was almost like visiting a fun interactive science museum or something. I think there problem was that a lot of people liked to go to the store to look at the stuff and enjoy the atmosphere, but not enough people actually bought anything.
very sad.. i loved woolworth 🌷 ❤️
I loved Woolworths to being from the city of Lancaster PA our store was down town and we went there everyday except Sunday
I FEEL SAD LOOKING AT THIS THE DOG I LOVED WOOLWORTH S
As a youngster, I remember Woolworth as a treat on Sunday afternoons: coffee counters with ice cream sundies and milk shakes. Granted not all locations had them, but they kept us busy while mother shopped. That back in days that seemed so much friendlier.
@@robertmundt6105 I was just about to say...the diner. I loved the BLT sandwich and the cute waitress.
We in Waltrop Germany still have a Woolworth store
I miss the lunch counters great Hamburgers hot dogs and ice cream. I'm surprised nobody tries to resurrect Woolworth's. It was always a fun experience as a kid to shop there.
I too miss Woolworth's they had the best soda fountain type restaurants, and you usually got what you ordered. If you wanted something hot it was hot if you wanted something cold it was cold. Yeah those were the days alright!
I used to shop there as a kid. Boy, do I feel old!
Yes they should ressurect it. If they make the customer experience the prime focus with the same sort of soda fountain diner meets general store feel. It would prolly bring back the fun of shopping brick, and mortar again.
Nice house stuff too
San Fransisco had the best Woolworth. Powell and Market. Rode the cable car there!!!
Woolworth's was a very important part of my childhood. Shopped there all the time with my parents. In later years, even my wife worked there part time before we got married. Was such a shame when one day they just weren't there any more.
Loved the smell of popcorn when I walked into to store.
Definitely remember the popcorn smell.
is there a subgroup of company man fans who haven' t heard of half of these companies but watch these videos anyway?
It happens with a lot of us
Even though I have heard of most of these stores, Im here for his voice.
I grew up in the 50's and 60's and I always loved to go to Woolworth's five & dime. As a child I got clothes, toys and anything else we needed as a family. As a teen, I bought my first AM pocket radio, my first 45RPM record and record player, then my first guitar a Woolworth's. They also sold guitar strings and picks, which I frequently needed. And Woolworth's always had a great lunch bar. Never spent more than 50 cents to a dollar for a great complete lunch including a drink! I miss Woolworth's today.
I do too.
Really good hot dogs, although I generally preferred Grants, Jupiter's/Kresge's or H.L. Green's as a child. (Nothing smelled like H.L. Greens).
Yes, I remember the lunch counter. I used to go there for lunch when I was in High School. You got a soup and sandwich for a buck. And you even got a coke with it.
and omg their fresh home made limeade on a hot Texas summer day !!
I particularly remember the hot dogs fondly . . . .
I grew up in Buffalo, NY during and after WW II. There were Woolworth stores in every neighborhood. Dozens of them. Most of them were fairly small but seemed to have a wide variety of items. Fabrics and notions, casual clothing, kitchen appliances and gadgets. I even bough a canary in the pet department.
You mentioned "failure to adjust" and I think that's it. They remained stuck in the past and never updated inside. I loved it for its nostalgic value but that's it, really. They used to be in a local somewhat upscale mall near me (they owned Champs Sports - the store I worked in) and the store just didn't fit there at all because they never updated their aesthetics. I think that had something to do with why they died.
I loved Woolworth’s. My grandfather used to take me to the downtown Gastonia, NC store. When the store in downtown Charlotte, NC closed, I was its last customer (by design). In college at UNC, I worked part time in the Durham, NC store-proud to have been an F. W. Woolworth employee.
Brian , I remember Woolworth's very fondly.. My mother & I shopped at the one in Elgin..they had really good food at the mini diner..
Please do one on Woolworths UK for all the british people like me!
Yup!
I think they were around a while longer, correct?
Agreed
Please oh my gosh when they closed down
Was disappointed when this video wasn't about the British Woolworths or didn't at least cover both chains. :/
I went to work for Woolco in 1981 and quit about 4 months later. The manager told me I was making a huge mistake and that Woolworth is a great company. I went to work for a supermarket company for $5k more. Eighteen months later I ended back up at that Woolco store. But this time to inspect it as an acquisition. The only employee left was the manager sitting frustrated in the store alone selling off fixtures and equipment. He didn’t have anything nice to say about Woolworth now.
My great aunt traveled the U.S. opening lunch counters. She would help order in supplies, hire and train the staff, and stay on a month or two until they could carry on without her. Next, it was off to a new city and a new lunch counter. We never knew where she was but jumped for joy when she would pull into our driveway as we were allowed to take trips with her when she inspected ongoing lunch counter operations. I have a large canvas print of the St. Augustine Woolworth's door push plate as a fond reminder of those days. It was the only branded item still in place in 2016. I loved those stores! My first pair of blue jeans were bought at the Colonial Mall location in Orlando, Florida and their grilled cheese sandwiches fueled me throughout childhood. Thanks for the memories!
You _know_ a company hit it big when you hear someone describing the reasons it succeeded, and go "So what? That's just the basics, what made them stand out?"
(Come to think of it, this applies to more than just companies.)
Like when a guy thinks that just being nice is going to lead to women throwing themselves at him? Being nice should be the default - you're expected to be nice!
Completely Agree.
Timothy McLean if company doesnt adapt, it would fall faster eventually
Woolworth is the retail version of the "Seinfeld is unfunny" trope.
Timothy McLean the return of Woolworths and gold blatts.
I miss the little breakfast/lunch counter in Woolworth's.
Don't forget, some even had a full service restaurant.
I remember that the big cites had one, but in towns like mine with a mere 90+K population, we didn't get anything but the small counter.
It was Harvest House
The very last time I was in a Woolworth was with my little daughter getting breakfast before we went shopping. The diner counter along with milkshakes and coffee made it convenient and more fun. Real food, good prices - in my early years shopping with my allowance it was the only place my money went far enough.
I miss Woolworth, I always enjoyed their atmosphere.
I'm so hooked on your videos, everytime I watch one I scroll and say ohhh I remember that and it becomes a marathon lol, keep up the good work 👍🏾
What about Woolworths in Australia? They are still there.
exactly
Unrelated to the US and UK companies. The Australian company simply used the name in the 1920s because it was already famous and not registered in Australia
Still going
That's what I was thinking the whole time like bruh I just went to Woolies the other day, what they on about? 😂
Woollies is killing it in Australia 🇦🇺
I'm just old enough to have been to Woolworth's countless times as a kid, adolescent- but that was it. The year I went off to college, the stores all began closing. My mom, a teacher, would always bring me there for school supplies because the prices were great and it kept me occupied while she looked at the clothes. Smart! I've sat in those swivel chairs, had a Coke at the counter... and I was born in 1982. It really was heartbreaking to lose Woolworth's when I could have used inexpensive school supplies the most.
I am the same age as you, but I never stepped foot in one. Perhaps they weren't in my area.
So you're kinda like me, one of the last generation to have the 5&10 experience (I was born in 1980). :)
Woolworth's had very good food, a great candy selection, lots of toys plus seemingly every board game and everything inbetween all at good prices. One of my favorite stores as a kid. Makes no sense that they are not still around in the USA as they were very popular stores in every City.
Thanks for sharing. At age 67 I remember Woolworth, and LOVED their stores. They had great lunch counters in the 1960's. Too bad they're gone. I will say, very few people used the word "awesome" in the old days. To me, that word is TOO overused.
I always loved the little coffee shops in a lot of the Woolworth stores. It was a joy to eat there and maybe grab a great milkshake too! I really miss Woolworths....
Come to SA you will change your mind.
My mom always took me to Woolworths but we could never afford to go eat anything. I remember wishing one day we could:)
My Nana would take me there and undoubtedly I always got a treat...a trip to the luncheon counter and little toy cars were my treat...and the closest Woolthworth's was right down the street...now...I like to go into different older towns and cities and look at the old buildings...all I've seen still has the name on them and are referred to as such...Check out the Woolworth's store and S.S. Kresge buildings in Asheville, North Carolina...
Yes! I had forgotten the coffee shops in there. You could get cheap Egg, peas and Chips lunches there too.
fun facts:
woolworth today is top 2 biggest supermarkets in australia (the other one is coles)
kmart today is top 2 biggest department stores in australia (the other one is big w)
ford usa discontinued "falcon" model in the 70s, but ford australia continued to produce it until 2016 (with two trims, 4.0L inline 6cyl and 5.0L v8) and today it's australia's top 2 RWD sedan/ute (the other one is holden commodore)
so basically australia does throwback america better than the real america
Because the U.S don't need to throw back.
Target America - A massive retail chain just second behind Walmart
Target Australia - A Shadow of its former self 10 years ago
There is something that the US and Australia have in common
Myer and Macy's - Declining in net worth and profits
David Jones and JC Penney - Declining in net worth and profits
Company Man should just make an extra long video on the decline of department stores.
@@dodecahedron1 I ❤Falcons, never drove one but gramps had one. I see them in classic car shows. I hate FoMoCo is going to stop making cars.
Some 'Muricans have no sense. Every store I like to shop at, is gone. Hate Wal-Mart! So I shop at antique, thrift stores now.
Not to mention El Camino-style utes are still huge out there.
I remember visiting Australia and seeing not only how big Kmart is, but that you still use the 70's/80's logo! God bless your country.
I Loved Woolworth as a child! But as time went by, and they were in decline, it looked like they weren't stocking up their merchandise. Kinda eerie and sad at the same time! OMG!! and the pets they sold too!! Gold fishes and hamsters!!🥰
I worked there as a “stock boy”. That was in 1980. The lunch counter was the busiest portion of the business at that time. By the 80’s the merchandise was pretty junky and it became less appealing to shoppers. Certain categories were still popular though, like fabric and small pets and pet supplies. I remember the soda fountain. The one I worked at was in the biggest mall in Wisconsin.
Woolworth's was absolutely class, legendary shop. The fact that WHSmith is still in business and not Wooly's proves how far our society has fallen tbh.
Thanks for these historical vignettes! Every Saturday morning my mom & I would clean our house together. Afterward we would take the bus downtown to Woolworth's where she treated me to a BLT sandwich & a (real) milkshake at the lunch counter. I was impressed by the cute waitress uniforms that included small caps to control their hair; they were required to wear a hairnet to contain longer hair. It was at Woolworth's that I discovered strawberry-rhubarb pie which became my favorite (with ice cream on top). Such sweet memories! 💞
Charlotte Towler when did you go to Woolworth’s? In the 80’s my mom would take me there. I loved the lunch counter. Our local store did well up to the very end. I also loved Woolworth’s during Halloween and Christmas.
It was during the late 40's that Mom introduced me to that wonderful store where I could hardly wait to spend some of my allowance. I remember purchasing little juice glasses painted flowers that were 5 cents each, "45" records, a stainless steel bracelet engraved with my name, & Evening in Paris perfume in a small blue flask with a fancy tasseled cord around the neck. There was always something new & wonderful to see. 😊
We're kindred spirits a generation apart! 😊
Larry, your writing is every bit as good!
As a kid I loved looking at the birds and fish at the pet department. That store was so much fun. I'd find all kinds of interesting stuff. I miss that store.
I lOVE WOOLWORTH I REMEMBER ME AND MY MOM SHOPPING THEIR AND SITTING AT THE COUNTER IT WAS AWESOME BACK IN THE DAY I LOVED IT.
Another expression that is defunct--‘5 and Dime’. Cool thing back ‘in the day’ wooden floors and candy sold by the bag scooped out with metal handled spoons. Those big overhead fans would feel so great on a hot day! Soda fountains with those cool seats that swiveled, loved those stores!
I worked at Woolco in the questionable ‘millinery dept’ --no hats tho--so I was there when the end began with having part time at night & full time was during the day. K Mart was a huge part of under cutting of prices but the quick expansion into appliances was a huge mistake too. They should’ve stuck with Woolworth’s.
I miss candy by the bag🙁mom would let me pick and guess the weight by holding the bag.
Christina Cope --Wasn’t the smell fantastic?? I can’t tell if candy was better or maybe just being young, everything SEEMED better. I just never had chocolate covered peanuts that I yearned more for than those💕
I think most people today think a 5 & Dime is where you buy your first real six string.
Bradley’s
In Chihuahua, Chihuahua, México there's a Woolworth that's been there for ages. My dad would tell me about his medschool years and how he would go there to drink some coffee and have some pie. The store still operates and is quite a place to visit if you come to Chihuahua as it's located in one of the most popular trade zones: "Calle Libertad" (Liberty Street)
In tijuana to
COOL!
Medjeed86 Que chevere. Quien seran los duenos? Viva Mexico!
Did woolworths in America have "Pick n Mix"? In England, it was the part of Woolies that is remembered - different sweets(candy) you could pick and mix in one bag which was weighed and you paid for that weight regardless of what you had chosen. So sherbert lemons, gob stoppers, mint humbugs, coconut mushrooms, pineapple cubes, chocolate caramels - all one price
I definitely remember both Woolworths and Woolco. Woolworths was one of the mall entrances, and I still have a pie plate I bought from one of the Woolworths downtown when my kids were very small🙂
The merchandise in Woolco was low quality, yet the prices were not. That may have contributed to their demise....
Generally, the Shopping Malls were the downfall of the Downtown experience, so many of the Mom & Pop stores suffered a miserable death.
So true and sad.
They died because of retail economies of scale. Tough luck, Luddite.
And now the malls are suffering the same fate. Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose.
It's all mail-order(Amazon etc) now.
David Januszewski This destroyed community life. This is what happened to my town where I grew up. Interestingly, this community concept around shopping and dining is starting to come back.
I remember my mom taking me to Woolworth’s when I was a child and buying me 45’s and eating at the lunch counter..sigh..💔
"Woolworth's" was a store chain i grew up with! Sometimes GREAT VALUES, sometimes not so much, but they were like FAMILY! I MISS THIS STORE CHAIN! For those who are too young to remember, their stores seemed like HOME, in any town!
Wow, Woolworth's was a blast from the past. I'm just discovering your channel here in 2020 and really enjoy it; this video reminded me of some other store chains that came after (in my area, at least, though the companies are as old or older than WW) but are also dead now - how about Zayre, Ames, and probably the oddest one: Service Merchandise? (and similar: Best)
I actually miss Woolworth’s and the icees and popcorn they used to sell
Yes. Great popcorn! Up front by the checkouts. Warm, lots of salt!
Paul Siegle In those long bags?
@@mariannesouza8326 Yes. The long bags. How come things were so much better then!? lol
Kmart had the same thing for me growing up 😭
Fire Star ❤️ my mom took me there for ice cream sodas. The best memories!
I was there, I saw it happen. I started working for Woolworth/Kinney corporate in NYC during the early eighties. That was my office about 2-4 inches down from the top depending on your phone size. The company suffered from stagnant indecision, no one knew what the hell they were doing because the market was changing way too rapidly for the old timers running the show... that not only constipated any creative forecasting, it generated fear to gamble on new perspectives, thus the company lost all of its visionary wind, like a sail boat on dead seas, it went nowhere. We all felt our CEO was subconsciously headed for the rocks. Sensing the impending doom, we all moved on rather than wait to be laid off. It was terrible watching as the exodus worsened.
BTW, Woolco was intentionally remodeled to mimic K-Mart when it hit. Some thought that was a mistake. So they pitched that Woolco should become more grandiose, the size of a warehouse selling a wider range of goods. The boss thought their concept sounded too much like Sears, so it was dismissed straight out. Although discouraged by the rejection, these 3-dimensional thinkers & planners left and eventually went where open minded concepts were recognized & appreciated. They went on to help PriceClub transition into Costco, which along with e-commerce (aka Amazon) eventually brought down the infamous and much heralded Sears/Kmart business model.
Yes thank you for the info
My mother used to cal Woolworth "The five and dime". That was back in the 60's.
I had an aunt who was semi-retired.. and worked part time at W.T. Grant. Very similar to Woolworth. Those were the days!
You explain it better than the video.
NotSnarl Proof, what would you prefer, my SS# or my name? I have nothing to hide. Back then I ran the digital Planogram Dept. Now you may be my guest and go look that up. BTW, this is CZcams where you either have faith or not, but asking for proof on YT is absolutely ridiculous.
The Woolworth store was actually fun to shop. The stairs down to the basement led you to a realm of great stuff at bargain prices.
I remember visiting Woolworth stores as a kid in Chicago. There were several of them on State Street alone. The last one I visited it was in the later 80’s. I also remember Kinney shoes.😂
I wanted to see this because I worked at Woolworth's when I was 19. We had those old fashioned cash registers, so you actually had to count out the change.
I always got my records there, makeup and perfume too. Everything a young teen needed. We had one close enough to walk to. Good memories. Oh, and loved the square hotdog buns.
St. Augustine Florida had an old Woolworth store when I moved there. Their soda fountain had the best hamburger, BLT and grilled cheese in the world. Every little kid could find an affordable gift for their parent or sweetheart and have a successful first date at o e of the dining room booths.
The reason Woolco failed was poor service, dirty store,unfriendly staff and a draconian return policy. There was other places to shop, where you were treated right.
I have fond memories of visiting Woolworth's as a kid in the late 80s, early 90s. The store wasn't quite as busy as the other stores around it but it did seem to do okay. What really sticks out in my memory though was their restaurant. That was always busy and I remember begging to stop there for lunch any time we were nearby.
5 and dime store, or later just dime store. There were many dime stores but Woolworth's was the biggest and the best. Great food at the lunch counter in every store. I grew up in the deep south in the 50's but have lived in NY State for the past 40+ years and go into NY City occasionally and the Woolworth's building is the most beautiful building in Manhattan. The lobby itself will blow you away and all the gorgeous brass elevator doors and entrances. I used to use a lawyer on the upper floors years ago and the ride up was like something at the county fair. Most beautiful building I have ever seen. The lobby was huge, had shops, news stands, flower shops, barber shops etc. HIGH Gothic ceilings in marble and tile. We used to always stop and go into the lobby just to look at the beauty anytime we were in the city. But after 9-11 you can't do that anymore. Its restricted to people that work there or if you have business with a tenant. Too bad. Nice informative video. Thanks.
I know! Wasn't that an amazing building? I loved the Arts&Crafts tile work. After 9/11 they closed all the best architectural wonders of NYC. You used to be able to go into the Chrysler bldg and upstairs they had an incredible restaurant with the ceilings painted with planets.
9/11 ruined a lot of things for a lot of people. The ramifications of that event forever changed our lives, sadly.
@@patrickgrady5219 yes... Sadly. I wonder if the fine folks that currently own the Woolworth Building also have it rigged so they can "pull it" if they have to... I'd bet it is, if Silverstein is the owner... Sad times we're in, indeed.
THE NARRATOR SOUNDS LIKE A WET BEHIND THE EARS TEENAGER THAT IS VERY DISRESPECTFUL. I WORKED WITH THEM MANY YEARS AND I CAN TELL YOU THEY TREATED EMPLOYEES MUCH, MUCH BETTER THAN COMPANIES TODAY. MAYBE SOMEONE THAT HAS MORE RESPECT CAN DO A NEW NARRATION DONE IN GOOD TASTE.
Why is ten cents called a dime?
I loved going to Woolworth’s as a kid. They served food and I use to beg my mother for candy that they use to have lined up at the front of the store.
We live in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Bavaria and there's one in town here. Love it. Missed it from when I was growing up in NYC, NY.
First to say that this is the defunct American Woolworth, not the currently in business Australian Woolworth
Shadow Kat in NZ its countdown :)
@@reeseclarke9293 its such a weird name in NZ lol
Also, the Australian counterpart is called 'Woolworths' and not "Woolworth".
It's not just Australian and NZ Woolworth that survived, just been to one today.
He made it quite clear early on in the video that he was talking about the American Wookworth.
Woolworth's was a large part of my childhood shopping experience.
My first job out of high school was at a Woolworths, and there was a huge one in Philadelphia on Chestnut St that I really loved, and still miss. Never saw a Woolco store
I shopped @ Woolworth's downtown Detroit ALL THE TIME. Great stuff! I miss the golden olden days🌟
This is an outstanding episode. I totally didn’t see the Foot Locker development coming.
I was a kid, but I do remember these stores. We had a Woolco in a strip mall near us, within easy walking distance, and a Woolworth in a very high end mall (Southpark, now the highest rent mall in Charlotte, NC).
The Woolco was cool to walk around as a kid. It was like Kmart conceptually but the location near us was substantially smaller, maybe half the size of our local Kmart. It was modestly busy in the strip mall that also included an A&P grocery store and Revco drug store.
My perception was that it was convenient but I never remember it being super busy, though never devoid of customers. We were all disappointed when it closed. The staff at both stores were nice and helpful and both stores were clean and organized but I recall Woolco having really huge sections of stuff like linens and smaller sections of consumer staples like paper towels though I was very young and it was long ago so I may not be 100% accurate here.
Woolworth was nicer and seemed “higher end” mostly because it was in a very nice mall and had a very good little restaurant. I recall it having a little bit of everything, but it was always neat and organized. It was also a very large store for a mall (I’m sure the biggest non-anchor store in the mall). I have been back to that mall a few times in recent years and still remember where the Woolworth was and wish I could go into the little restaurant one more time. It was surprisingly good and I remember it had a little electric gate to let you in (it was one way so you had to leave after walking through the store).
I hope this helps.
Fond memories of Woolworths. Whenever that teenage angst would hit, dad would throw me in the car, take me down to Woolworths, and we'd split a banana split and talk it out.
As a small boy, my mother stopped in the local Woolworths every Saturday and my treat was to pick out a 45rpm record. Perhaps my favorite Saturday was the one right after Thanksgiving because the store had magically been transformed into a Christmas wonderland from the week before. It’s a strange concept for younger people of today to hear, but back then no store would dare display anything Christmas until Thanksgiving was over.
My Mom loved Woolworth's!! I can still remember going "shopping" there,with her. In the 1960's!!!