 | |
| Industry | Retail |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1868 (as Strawbridge & Clothier) |
| Defunct | September 9, 2006 |
| Fate | Acquired by Macy's, Inc. |
| Successor | Macy's |
| Headquarters | 8th and Market Streets, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Products | Clothing, footwear, bedding, furniture, jewelry, beauty products, and housewares. |
| Parent | May Department Stores (1996-2005) Federated Department Stores (2005-2006) |
| Website | Official website (2004 archive) at the Wayback Machine (archived 2004-06-30) |
Strawbridge's, formerly Strawbridge & Clothier, was a department store in the northeastern United States, with stores in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. The Center City Philadelphia flagship store was, in its day, a gracious urban emporium. The retailer started adding branch stores starting in the 1930s and, by their zenith in the 1980s, enjoyed annual sales of over a billion dollars[1] By the 1990s, Strawbridge's became part of the May Department Stores conglomerate until May's acquisition by Federated Department Stores on August 30, 2005.
May operated the Strawbridge's stores under the Northern Virginia-based Hecht's Department Store division. On February 1, 2006, the former May Company divisions were all dissolved, and operating control of the remaining Strawbridge's stores was assumed by Macy's East.
Macy's closed Strawbridge's flagship Center City store on May 23, 2006.[2] On September 9, 2006, the Strawbridge's and Hecht's nameplates were completely phased-out in favor of the Macy's brand.
- ^ "Philadelphia Keeps Strawbridge Name But Loses Retail Tradition." The New York Times (July 22, 1996)
- ^ "Strawbridge's Closes Its Doors" WPVI-TV website