One of the oldest operating retail operations in America. began by accident in 1886 when railroad station agent Richard W. Sears (December 7, 1863 – September 28, 1914) received a box of watches by mistake. He began selling the timepieces to his colleagues in Redwood Falls, Minnesota before branching out into mail order catalogs.
Sears moved to Chicago, where he met Alvah C. Roebuck, who joined him in the business. Sears Roebuck and Company was officially born in 1893 at which point the pair began to diversify.
By 1894, the Sears catalog had grown to 322 pages, and a year later the company was producing a 532-page catalog. By the early twentieth century it had become known in the industry as "the Consumers' Bible".
The sailor suit was a classic outfit for young boys in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In 1905, Sears Roebuck advertised a popular boy's sailor blouse suit, with the blouse "trimmed with black tape and two rows of silk soutache," for $1.35.
From 1908 to 1940, the Sears catalog even included ready-to-assemble kit houses. There were over 370 home designs, and the house had over 30,000 parts worth 25 tons. You'd select your house then Sears would ship it to you by railroad and you'd assemble it yourself based on the instructions. Sears claimed a man of “average” abilities could assemble it in 90 days.They sold 70,000 to 75,000 such homes, many of which are still lived in today.
When the Sears catolg printers switched from a thin, newspaper-like stock to a more modern glossy paper stock, people wrote in to the company to complain that the magazine couldn't be used for toilet paper anymore.
Sears' first department store opened in 1925 within the company's huge 16-hectare (40-acre) headquarters complex of offices, laboratories and mail-order operations at Homan Aveue and Arthington Street on Chicago's West Side. The store opened in 1925.
From the 1920s to the 1950s, Sears built many urban department stores in the USA, Canada and Mexico, and by the mid twentieth century they'd overshadowed the mail-order business.
On January 1, 1961, The National Bank of Chicago issued a check for $960.242 billion to Sears, the largest check ever issued.
In 1969, Sears, Roebuck & Co. was the largest retailer in the world, with about 350,000 employees.
Sears moved to Chicago, where he met Alvah C. Roebuck, who joined him in the business. Sears Roebuck and Company was officially born in 1893 at which point the pair began to diversify.
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| Richard Sears |
By 1894, the Sears catalog had grown to 322 pages, and a year later the company was producing a 532-page catalog. By the early twentieth century it had become known in the industry as "the Consumers' Bible".
The sailor suit was a classic outfit for young boys in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In 1905, Sears Roebuck advertised a popular boy's sailor blouse suit, with the blouse "trimmed with black tape and two rows of silk soutache," for $1.35.
From 1908 to 1940, the Sears catalog even included ready-to-assemble kit houses. There were over 370 home designs, and the house had over 30,000 parts worth 25 tons. You'd select your house then Sears would ship it to you by railroad and you'd assemble it yourself based on the instructions. Sears claimed a man of “average” abilities could assemble it in 90 days.They sold 70,000 to 75,000 such homes, many of which are still lived in today.
When the Sears catolg printers switched from a thin, newspaper-like stock to a more modern glossy paper stock, people wrote in to the company to complain that the magazine couldn't be used for toilet paper anymore.
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| Sears, Roebuck and Company catalog, 1918 |
Sears' first department store opened in 1925 within the company's huge 16-hectare (40-acre) headquarters complex of offices, laboratories and mail-order operations at Homan Aveue and Arthington Street on Chicago's West Side. The store opened in 1925.
From the 1920s to the 1950s, Sears built many urban department stores in the USA, Canada and Mexico, and by the mid twentieth century they'd overshadowed the mail-order business.
On January 1, 1961, The National Bank of Chicago issued a check for $960.242 billion to Sears, the largest check ever issued.
In 1969, Sears, Roebuck & Co. was the largest retailer in the world, with about 350,000 employees.
The CIA paid Vietnam War spies by ordering them items from the Sears catalog because the spies operated in areas that had a barter economy and didn't rely on cash.
In the late 1960s, the Sears executives decided to consolidate the thousands of employees in offices distributed throughout the Chicago area into one building on the western edge of Chicago's Loop. The 110-story Sears Tower in Chicago was topped out on May 3, 1973, becoming the world's tallest building, a title it took from the former World Trade Center towers in New York.
Sears created well-know financial services brands to sell diversified products in it's stores like brokerage business Dean Witter Reynolds and Discover Card. In the 1990s, the company began divesting itself of many non-retail entities, which were detrimental to the company's bottom line. Sears spun off its financial services arm which included Dean Witter Reynolds and Discover Card.
On November 17, 2004 the American big box departmental store chain Kmart Corp announced it was buying Sears, Roebuck and Co. for $11 billion. The Kmart management formed "Sears Holdings" upon completion of the merger the following year.
Sears Holdings Corporation was the 20th-largest retailing company in the United States in 2015, However after poor sales for several years it was forced to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on October 15, 2018, the same day that a $134 million debt payment was due. It sold its assets the following year to ESL Investments.
The Sears Tower in Chicago contains enough steel to build 50,000 automobiles.
At one point in the 1970s, 1 out of every 204 working Americans was employed by Sears.
In terms of domestic revenue, Sears was the largest retailer in the United States until October 1989, when Walmart surpassed the record.
Sears moved from the Sears Tower to the new Prairie Stone Business Park in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, between 1993 and 1995.
Source About.com
In the late 1960s, the Sears executives decided to consolidate the thousands of employees in offices distributed throughout the Chicago area into one building on the western edge of Chicago's Loop. The 110-story Sears Tower in Chicago was topped out on May 3, 1973, becoming the world's tallest building, a title it took from the former World Trade Center towers in New York.
Sears created well-know financial services brands to sell diversified products in it's stores like brokerage business Dean Witter Reynolds and Discover Card. In the 1990s, the company began divesting itself of many non-retail entities, which were detrimental to the company's bottom line. Sears spun off its financial services arm which included Dean Witter Reynolds and Discover Card.
On November 17, 2004 the American big box departmental store chain Kmart Corp announced it was buying Sears, Roebuck and Co. for $11 billion. The Kmart management formed "Sears Holdings" upon completion of the merger the following year.
Sears Holdings Corporation was the 20th-largest retailing company in the United States in 2015, However after poor sales for several years it was forced to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on October 15, 2018, the same day that a $134 million debt payment was due. It sold its assets the following year to ESL Investments.
The Sears Tower in Chicago contains enough steel to build 50,000 automobiles.
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| Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower), Chicago. |
At one point in the 1970s, 1 out of every 204 working Americans was employed by Sears.
In terms of domestic revenue, Sears was the largest retailer in the United States until October 1989, when Walmart surpassed the record.
Sears moved from the Sears Tower to the new Prairie Stone Business Park in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, between 1993 and 1995.
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| Sears' current logo |
Source About.com
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