Kaufmann's

Kaufmann's

Industry	Retail
Fate	Merged into Macy's
Successor(s)	Macy's
Founded	1871
Defunct	2006
Headquarters	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Key people	Jacob Kaufmann, Isaac Kaufmann, and Edgar J. Kaufmann
Products	Clothing, footwear, bedding, furniture, jewelry, beauty products and housewares
Parent	Federated Department Stores, Inc (2005-2006) The May Department Stores Company (1946-2005)
Website	None

Kaufmann's was a local department store that originated in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was owned in the early 20th century by Edgar J. Kaufmann, patron of 'Fallingwater'. In the post-war years, the store became a regional chain in the eastern United States, and was last owned by Federated Department Stores. At the height of its existence, it had some 59 stores in 5 states. Formerly part of May Department Stores prior to that company's acquisition by Federated on Aug. 30, 2005, Kaufmann's operated as part of the Filene's organization in Boston, Massachusetts. On Feb. 1, 2006, the Filene's/Kaufmann's organization was dissolved and the management of its stores was assumed by Macy's East and the new Macy's Midwest. On Sept 9, 2006, the Kaufmann's name was retired as Federated Department Stores converted the former May Company brands to the Macy's masthead. On August 12, 2006 a sign was installed on the corner of Smithfield Street and Fifth Avenue outside the original store in Downtown Pittsburgh reading Kaufmann Way.

History

For a time Kaufmann's was the most prominent of seven other department stores in downtown Pittsburgh including Kaufmann & Baer founded by cousins of the original 'Kaufmann's' founders; Gimbel Brothers; Horne's; Boggs & Buhl; Frank & Seder's, and Rosenbaum's.

Kaufmann's was founded in Pittsburgh in 1871 [1] by Jacob and Isaac Kaufmann as a small South Side mens store. In 1877, the brothers moved downtown to a location that became known as The Big Store. In the first half of the 20th century, the store was owned by Edgar J. Kaufmann.

May Company—Regional growth

With Edgar J. Kaufmann remaining as president, the Kaufmann's chain was acquired by the California based May Company Department Stores in 1946. The Kaufmann's division operated stores in Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio and West Virginia.

The Kaufmann's chain dominated its local region, absorbing several other department stores including Strouss (1986) based in Youngstown, Ohio; Sibley's (1991) based in Rochester, New York (which had merged with Hengerer's (1981) of Buffalo, New York); May Company Ohio (1992) based in Cleveland, Ohio (which had merged with O'Neil's (1989) in Akron, Ohio); and in 1995 the remnants of McCurdy's stores of Rochester and Hess's of Allentown, Pennsylvania.

Gimbels and Macy's

Ironically, Gimbel Brothers history in Pittsburgh had originated with their purchase of the 'Kaufmann & Baer' department store in 1926, founded by a rival faction of the Kaufmann family.

In 1970, the entire Gimbels chain was purchased by the tobacco comglomerate BATUS. In 1986, after years of declining sales, BATUS announced that Gimbels chain was for sale. Unable to find a buyer for the entire chain, BATUS closed down the unprofitable Gimbels-Pittsburgh division, closing all of its locations and selling the properties, except for some of the high profit Gimbels locations in shopping malls rebranded and kept as Kaufmann's stores.

In October 1986, May Company acquired Joseph Horne Co. (Horne's), as part of their merger with Associated Dry Goods. Due to anti-trust concerns and legal action by the City of Pittsburgh, Horne's was promptly sold in December 1986 to a local investor group. After several years of private ownership, it was announced that Dillard's Department Stores would buy the Horne's chain to combine it with the Dillard/DeBartolo co-owned Higbee's stores based in Cleveland. The deal collapsed and was not completed. The Joseph Horne Co. was sold off in parts, with Dillard's acquiring its five Ohio stores in 1992 and Federated Department Stores's Lazarus Department Stores division acquiring Kaufmann's remaining nine Pennsylvania stores in 1995. Federated eventually merged all its divisions (including former 'Horne's/Lazarus store locations) into the Macy's stores division.

Into the 21st century

In 2002, the Kaufmann's stores' Pittsburgh business headquarters was closed, and its back-office operations were consolidated into those of Filene's Department Stores in Boston.

Kaufmann's flagship store

The original Flagship store in downtown Pittsburgh was built in 1887 on the corner of Fifth Avenue and Smithfield Street and became known as The Big Store. It has undergone various expansions and remodelings since then. Architect Charles Bickel designed the H. and I Kaufman and I. Kaufman stores in 1898. In 1913, the architects Janssen & Abbott designed a larger white terra cotta-sheathed addition in a Neoclassical revival style structure with Renaissance Revival style details and a large ornamental public clock at the corner. In the late 1920s, Edgar G. Kaufmann commissioned a redesign of the main floor of the department store. Local architect Benno Janssen and his partner William Cocken rose to the challenge and created an art-deco masterpiece. It is remembered for its striking black Carrara glass columns, bronze metalwork, terrazzo floors, and a million dollars' worth of new elevators. The building was the largest department store in Pittsburgh with twelve retail floors totaling 750,000 square feet (70,000 m²), and spanning an entire downtown city block who commissioned Frank Lloyd Wright to design his executive offices on the top floor of The Big Store, as well as his country house 'Fallingwater' (1934) at the company's Bear Run retreat in Pennsylvania. The office interior was saved and reinstalled in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. He also commissioned renowned architect Richard Neutra to design the iconic desert Kaufmann House (1946) in Palm Springs, California.Kaufmann's started several holiday traditions that were carried on after it was taken over such as animated Christmas windows and Santa Land. Although Macy's has taken over the building, several signs remain in the parking garage and on the building itself that still read Kaufmann's.

Meet me under Kaufmann's clock

Kaufmann's famous historic clock (on the left side of the building).

Kaufmann's flagship "The Big Store" has a large landmark outdoor Clock on the corner of Fifth Avenue at Smithfield Street beside the building. The clock became a popular downtown meeting place, with the oft used phrase "Meet me under Kaufmann's clock." The clock is a Pittsburgh icon, and often featured in visual materials representing and marketing the city. Both the Kaufmann's flagship building and the clock are registered National Historic Landmarks. Upon announcing the 2006 end of the Kaufmann's name and becoming Macy's, the store gave out tote bags printed with the Clock's image and its phrase "Meet me under the Kaufmann's clock" to honor the store's One Hundred and thirty five year history. Also in 2006, USA Today ran an article about the regional chains being merged into Macy's, and the piece featured memories from Pittsburghers about the store and the clock: "As girls in their best dresses and Mary Jane shoes, they rode streetcars downtown to the 11-story Kaufmann's department store here. Jean Wenner, 81 [in 2006], and her friends grew up on Kaufmann's, meeting under the store's ornate clock, lunching at the Tic Toc restaurant and bringing their own children to the Secret Santa." In 2013 the Kaufmann's Clock celebrated its 100th Anniversary, to celebrate Macy's held a weekened of festivities including a block party on Smithfield Street in front of the store.[2]:

The Kaufmann's Parade

Since the first Pittsburgh Celebrate the Season Parade in 1981, Kaufmann's continued sponsoring the parade for twenty-five years. The Parade had included balloons, musical acts, and celebrities for the main acts in front of the Kaufmann's Fifth Avenue flagship store. The local NBC-affiliated station, WIIC (now WPXI) broadcasts live 'Celebrate the Season Parade' coverage, with hosts Mike Hambrick-Edye Tarbox (1980–1991) and David Johnson-Peggy Finnegan (1991–present). After the Macy's merger with Kaufmann's in 2006, Macy's has sponsored the parade.

Kaufmann's artifacts

Though converted a year prior to this image's creation, this Macy's store located at The Waterfront still had Kaufmann's signage. The current Macy's sign can be seen slightly behind the trees. Macy's has since put a sign over this, but Kaufmann's can still be read underneath.

Although Kaufmann's was renamed Macy's, some of its namesake signs remain. There are several terra cotta plaques on the flagship store's facade still reading Kaufmann's, including above the original store entrance. The parking garage also has old signage still in place.

The phrase "Does Horne's tell Kaufmann's its business?" was used in Western Pennsylvania to put-off to inquiring people, with the meaning that a company does not give proprietary information out to its competitors.

See also

• List of defunct department stores of the United States

External links

• official Fallingwater website
• official Western Pennsylvania Conservancy website