Aldens was an American catalog merchant company.

History

Aldens was founded by Benjamin J. RosenthalChicago Jewish History: "Ernest Byfield: The Pump Room and The Pageant" by William Roth
September 2006 in 1889 in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

under the name

Mail Order and Millinery Company and was incorporated on December 15, 1902.Harvard Business School: "Lehman brothers Collection - Aldens, Inc."
retrieved December 19, 2017 The company primarily sold fashion apparel and accessories for women and men via its catalog. In 1906, the name was changed to Chicago Mail Order Company. In the 1930s, the company expanded through acquisitions: in 1935, it purchased the mailing lists of M.W. Savage Company of Minneapolis; and in 1936, those of Hamilton Garment of New York and D.T. Bohon of

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

. Soon after, Chicago Mail Order Company began offering a monthly payment plan to its customers, essentially granting credit; and expanded their line to include books, toys, and linens. In 1938, they expanded to include home furnishings and housewares; and sales increased to $24 million. In 1943, they built a large distribution warehouse in Chicago with 690,000 square feet of floor space. In 1944, they began to develop a retail network primarily in the

Midwest The Midwestern United States (also referred to as the Midwest, the Heartland or the American Midwest) is one of the four census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau. It occupies the northern central part of the United States. It ...

(which eventually expanded to 16 stores by 1959). In 1947, the company was the fourth-largest mail-order distributor in the United States with $79.2 million in sales and changed its name to Aldens, Inc. In 1957, sales were $102.4 million, they had 4,795 employees, and operated catalog telephone stores in 68 cities. In 1961, they began selling life insurance via their subsidiary, the John Alden Life Insurance Company. In 1964,

Gamble-Skogmo Gamble-Skogmo Inc. was an American Conglomerate (company), conglomerate of retail chains and other businesses that was headquartered in St. Louis Park, Minnesota. Business operated or franchised by Gamble-Skogmo included Gambles hardware and aut ...

(which had previously purchased a 46% interest in Aldens), purchased the remaining stock in the company including the life insurance unit. The catalog operation was liquidated in 1985 as part of bankruptcy proceedings for Wickes Companies, which had purchased Gamble-Skogmo in 1980.

References

{{reflist Retail companies established in 1889 Retail companies disestablished in 1985 Catalog showrooms 1889 establishments in Illinois 1985 disestablishments in Illinois Clothing retailers of the United States