Black Friday and Defunct Department Stores
My Aunt May could go to the bargain basement at Watson’s, scrounge around the heaping piles of clothes and come home with outfits that made her look like a model.
That’s one of my fondest department store memories.
The flagship of the Watson’s Department Store regional chain was located on Market Square in downtown Knoxville, Tennessee. They operated from 1907 until about 1992, when they filed for bankruptcy. It was their basement that Aunt May – and thousands of others – prowled.
Hell, now there’s even a restaurant/bar in Market Square named Not Watson’s. The owner recalls his mom frequently shopping in that same basement. As she loaded him and his siblings into the car, they’d laugh “Not Watson’s” when asked to guess where they were going. The restaurant has been open since 2014. The Not Watson’s name: brilliant way to honor a place’s history and family memories.
I grew up in the ’70s, when department stores were still a thing, still a fancy place. Downtown Knoxville was about an hour away from our Gatlinburg home, so a trip with Mom and/or Aunt May was always a big deal, complete with lunch.
In a word, magical.
For resellers and makers, there are lots of opportunities based on vintage – usually defunct – department stores.
You can resell an actual item, even an empty gift box. The boxes themselves were often elaborately designed. Pieces of art, if you will. Makers/crafters could use images for decoupage, posters, greeting cards and the like.
Department stores are on my mind this Black Friday, as I’ve seen news headlines suggesting the “death” of Black Friday.
Source: Library of Congress, department store window handkerchiefs, unmarked photo circa 1910-1926, National Photo Company Collection.
I beg to differ.
There’s a Tanger Outlet about 12 miles from me, and the Black Friday traffic is just as awful as in years past.
WBIR, my local NBC affiliate, aired a story this morning that showed a long line of folks outside Knoxville’s West Town Mall. What struck me was that Gen Z made up most of the front of the line. One young man interviewed said he’d been in line since 5:00 last night, waiting for the mall to open.
Specifically, he was headed to 96’Kickz, a shoe store I’d never heard of. Turns out, they sell new and used sneakers/athletic shoes.
So, yeah, purely anecdotal….but Black Friday seems robust to me.
Now for some defunct department store finds:
Lot# 122 from Danny Ayers Realty & Auction (Lancaster, KY) has some cool vintage marketing merch. There’s that “By Secret Agreement” Santa envelope, a pen, pencil and calendars. I’d be especially interested to see if anything is written in the one from November 1963.
This auction closes at 7:30 pm on Dec. 3. At press time, the high bid was $1. Broker premium is 18.5%.
Source: HiBid/ Danny Ayers Realty & Auction (Lancaster, KY)
Sleeper Lot
I’m fascinated with Lot# 850 from Grube Auctioneering LLC (Fort Recovery, OH).
The box from Goldstein’s Department Store features an exquisitely detailed drawing. Ooh la la! Inside, there’s an 80″×102″ tablecloth.
Auction closes at 10:00 am on Dec. 6. There were no bids at press time. Whaaat? Minimum opening bid is $5, and broker premium is 15%.
Source: HiBid/ Grube Auctioneering LLC (Fort Recovery, OH)
Source: HiBid/ Grube Auctioneering LLC (Fort Recovery, OH)
Source: HiBid/ Grube Auctioneering LLC (Fort Recovery, OH)
On Etsy, I found quite a few vintage items from defunct department stores.
This 1946 comic (coloring?) book from Newberry’s Department Store is offered by MemoriesfromLife for $44.99 (25% off $59.99) with free shipping. Love the retro art and colors!
Source: Etsy/ MemoriesfromLife
And, finally, we circle back to department store handkerchiefs.
Source: Etsy/ FiddleDeeDooDah
This handkerchief box offered by FiddleDeeDooDah is a lovely example of the elegance that could be found in department stores. The box is unmarked, but likely from the 1930s according to FiddleDeeDooDah.
It’s easy for me to imagine the days when you might be surprised with a handkerchief presented in a fine box…or surprised walking by a finely staged window display of department store handkerchiefs.
NOTE: Sellers/businesses mentioned here are selected by me. They have something that interests me and, hopefully, interests my readers. Etta’s Etceteras does not accept requests to be featured and does not accept revenue from advertising, affiliate links, etc.
I’d be honored if you drop by my Etsy vintage goods shop at http://www.EttasEtceteras.Etsy.com.
As always, thanks for reading.
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