4. Wanamaker’s and the development of the modern department store
By the end of the American Civil War, department stores existed in most major American cities, especially those of the North. Boston had Filene’s, Chicago was connected indelibly with Marshall Field’s, and Cincinnati, at the border of North and South, was served by Shillito’s and Alms and Doepke. All of the stores, many of which operated branch locations away from the downtown flagship store, offered a wide range of merchandise, yet many people continued to follow the shopping habits of their ancestors. Gentlemen garbed themselves with the assistance of a haberdasher or tailor; ladies had a favorite dressmaker. Both resorted to hatters for their needs, shoes were made by cobblers, boots by bootmakers, and gloves which were an essential part of daily apparel were provided by glovemakers. Department stores were disdainfully viewed as the purview of the lesser classes by many.
Philadelphia’s John Wanamaker and his eponymous store were among the first to challenge the long-held habits of the American consumer by selling ready-made clothing of equal or even better quality than those produced by local craftsmen. In doing so, he and the other retail magnates who followed his lead changed the American manufacturing industry forever. Mass-produced clothing, shoes, hats, and other accessories began to supplant the tailor-made variety, offered for sale in a variety of sizes, with alterations when necessary available in the store in which they were purchased. Items ordered from catalogs could be presented in stores for alterations as well. Wanamaker changed many aspects of retail in the United States, all of them through innovations which both increased his profits and made shopping more convenient for his customers.