Department Stores

We still have a few, Selfridges , Debenhams', John Lewis, Harvey Nichols, Fortnum & Mason, Liberty, M&S, Dunnes, and a few more, but it's just a drop in the ocean, compared to those we had in the past..and the vast majority of those we do have ar too expensive for the man on the street. The latest casualty is Frasers which was a huge department store with many branches..

I miss Woolworths ( before it got terrible in the few years before it closed , I worked there as a wages clerk in my teens) ..).. I miss Littlewooods, Lewis's. Texas Homecare, Comet and MFI
 

The thing I miss most is walking along the high streets at Christmas time, department store after store, side by side with the most wonderful Christmas displays in the windows, all lit up at night..although it was dark it was only 4 or 5 in the afternoon.... peering into these magic festive windows...

Malls are not the same at all...
 

When my husband was transferred to Ohio for his job we had 2 little kids in elementary schools....I didn't know anyone
in the neighborhood, so I decided to look for a part time job while kids were in school...I found a job in Woolworth's..
I loved that store...It was in the 70's....The Cash register was the old one that you had to push the buttons down....
And actually give people change...(I wish we had Woolworth's now)….They also had a soda fountain in the store....
 
Remember the "Floor Walkers" in the better department stores? They were well-dressed middle-aged gentlemen who "walked" the floor looking for problems and making sure everyone was being taken well care of.

Then there were the "security shoppers" who posed as regular shoppers but were really looking for shoplifters. Grandma and I were always taking bets on which ones they were. Usually they were the ones who weren't carrying coats on cold days.

You always had your favorite clerks.....the lady in the underwear department who could be trusted to sell you the right bra or the clerk in the shoe department who always brought exactly the shoes you wanted. You'd hang around until they were available rather than deal with the first one you came to. They knew their regular customers and always made you feel important.

And then there was the "ladies' lounge" with comfortable chairs and couches (and a restroom, of course) where you could sit and ease the feet for awhile before heading back out into the store for some more shopping.

Going shopping with my mom wasn't much fun. There was an objective (say, a white blouse) and that's what you came for. Straight to the juniors' blouses, pick one out, pay and leave the store. No wandering around just to see what was what. My grandma was the ultimate shopper, it was a challenge to her to see as much as possible and get the full value out of the day. That was her sport.
 
Great answers folks.I really miss Woolworths.For some reason I remember buying a badminton racquet in the basement of their Cardiff store when a student.Bought many an album there and all kinds of stationery and we had a big Woolco store in my town for a while.
 
I remember as a child going to Woolworths and buying warm salted nuts, they were sold in little greaseproof bags and, depending on how much pocket money you had left, peanuts were the cheaper option and cashews if you wanted to push the boat out !
 
Growing up, we had both Woolworth and Kresge dime stores. I never thought of either as being a "department store". Sadly Woolworth's is long gone, and Kresge's barely hangs on under it's K-Mart name.
 
I sometimes enjoy shopping, but Christmas time is not one of them. Yesterday, my wife drug me to her favorite store, Maceys. I am not a short man at 6’4”, so I know that people can see me. I stood at the checkout counter for almost 15 minutes while I don’t know how many clerks walked past me and looked at me standing at the counter holding 3 shirts and a robe.

I was finally able to maneuver getting my cell phone, called the store, asked for the manager and then asked the manger (female) if I could get some help. She asked me what was going on and I explained to her my situation. After I hung up the phone, someone showed up in less than 15 seconds.

The manager came out from wherever she was and apologized. As we could see, the store was not at all busy and the clerks were mainly just tidying up around their area. She invited me back to her office and then offered me a fairly large chocolate assortment package of Dove chocolates. I refused the gift, but thanked her and told her that maybe I over reacted, but I just become impatient standing in lines, which she said she does also. So, we had a pleasant conversation for maybe 10 minutes and I then again thanked her and left.

I met back up with my wife and told her my experience. She said that I definitely over reacted and should have apologized. Is she right? I promise not to show her this thread and if she is right, then I will go back into the store and apologize. I did feel somewhat bad about the way I handled the situation, but I guess that I was just frustrated. The more that I think about the incident, I think my wife is right. (Shoot)
 
Wren said:
I remember as a child going to Woolworths and buying warm salted nuts, they were sold in little greaseproof bags and, depending on how much pocket money you had left, peanuts were the cheaper option and cashews if you wanted to push the boat out !
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I remember going to Morrow's Nut House in my city which was a free-standing store. They were in other cities, too. Nothing but nuts and candies and they were the best nuts and candies in the world. Every kind of nut was available. No more stores, just on-line ordering now.
 
Oldman you said you already "told her that maybe I over reacted", I think that's enough. She didn't have to invite you, but she must have liked you all right. Don't worry about it.
 
Oldman, I don't think you over reacted. I think you did what most people would have done and then there are some that would not have waited that long and would have done more like just forgetting about the purchase and walking out. If this store wants to keep the business, they had better not do this too often or people will quit shopping there.
 
Oldman, I don't think you overreacted either. Waiting and waiting while workers just putzed around and didn't wait on you would annoy anybody. I probably would have done the same or gone to seek out a manager. OR, depending on how much I wanted the stuff I was trying to pay for, just left.
 

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