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Martin's was a specialty apparel retailer in the
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
metropolitan area, with its flagship location on Fulton Street in
Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
. It grew to six stores by the mid 1970s, before being sold to the operator of
Times Square Stores Times Square Stores (also called TSS and TSS Seedman's) was an American department store chain based in New York City that operated from 1929 to 1989. By the late 1980s the chain operated 12 stores in New York and 6 in Puerto Rico, and an off-pric ...
in 1977.


History


A Store Grows In Brooklyn

The history of Martin's dates back to at least 1903. Digital Metro New York
Martin's Silver Dress Parade Sheet Music (1928) Hyman Zeitz (c. 1860-1930), who emigrated to the United States in 1882, opened a coat and suit department in an existing blouse shop called Martin's at the corner of Fulton and Bridge Street in Brooklyn, New York. He eventually bought out the owner. The business gradually expanded, and in 1924 moved next door into the seven-story Offerman Building. In 1930, Hyman Zeitz died, and his son Fred. J. Zeitz took over as president (a position he held for over 35 years). In 1947, a modernized entrance to the Offerman Building, designed by architect
Morris Lapidus Morris Lapidus (November 25, 1902 – January 18, 2001) was an architect, primarily known for his Neo-baroque "Miami Modern" hotels constructed in the 1950s and 60s, which have since come to define that era's resort-hotel style, synonymous wi ...
, was completed, replacing the "gimcracks of the victorian era" with modern "simplicity."


Suburban Expansion

In the 1950s, Martin's began to expand and open additional locations in the New York suburbs. The first was a Garden City location in Nassau County, at Franklin and Ninth Street, which opened in April 1952. A
Babylon Babylon ( ) was an ancient city located on the lower Euphrates river in southern Mesopotamia, within modern-day Hillah, Iraq, about south of modern-day Baghdad. Babylon functioned as the main cultural and political centre of the Akkadian-s ...
store in Suffolk County opened in August 1956, in the Great South Bay Shopping Center, followed by a
Huntington Huntington may refer to: Places Canada * Huntington, Nova Scotia New Zealand * Huntington, New Zealand a suburb in Hamilton, New Zealand United Kingdom * Huntington, Cheshire, England * Huntington, East Lothian, Scotland * Huntingto ...
location (in the Big H Shopping Center) in August 1962. At and containing a 500-seat community room for civic meetings, the Huntington location was the largest branch store at the time, though still much smaller than the of the Brooklyn store. In 1966, Hyman Zeitz' grandson Wilbur Levin took over as president of the chain, though Fred and brother Harry remained active in senior roles. In a profile of the store done that year by
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
, Martin's was described as an "oasis of calm, even understatement" in the "hubbub" of Fulton Street, located almost directly across the street from
Abraham & Straus Abraham & Straus, commonly shortened to A&S, was a major New York City department store, based in Brooklyn. Founded in 1865, it became part of Federated Department Stores in 1929. Shortly after Federated's 1994 acquisition of R.H. Macy & Compan ...
, and discount stores J.W. Mays and
E. J. Korvette E. J. Korvette, also known as Korvette’s, was an American chain of discount department stores, founded in 1948 in New York City. It was one of the first department stores to challenge the suggested retail price provisions of anti-discounting ...
also nearby. The business was reported to have annual sales of $25 million, $15 million from the Fulton Street location. In 1968, the Times glowingly described the store: "(Fulton) street’s most prestigious unit, not only does more bridal business than any other store in the United States, but it is today one of the largest family-owned specialty stores in the country," and "which many consider a
Fifth Avenue Fifth Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan in New York City. The avenue runs south from 143rd Street (Manhattan), West 143rd Street in Harlem to Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village. The se ...
outpost because of its emphasis on better price and high quality." In August 1969, Martin's opened its fifth store in the Smith Haven Mall in the more eastern suburbs of Suffolk County, its first interior mall location.("Martin's, a fashion specialty store chain, opened its fifth store yesterday in the new Smith Haven Mall")


Decline and Sale

In 1972, president Wilbur Levin left Martin's to move into the banking industry, and another Zeitz grandson, Robert Rosenthal, took the reins. At the time, Levin reported that the stores "were doing well" and that his career change could be made "without disrupting Martin's." Although a sixth location was opened in the new Riverside Square Mall in Hackensack,
New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
in early 1977,(Riverside Square was the location) profits for the still family-held company had steadily declined during the 1970s. In October 1977, with reported annual sales of $30 million, Martin's was sold for an undisclosed amount of cash to the Seedman Merchandising Group, operator of
Times Square Stores Times Square Stores (also called TSS and TSS Seedman's) was an American department store chain based in New York City that operated from 1929 to 1989. By the late 1980s the chain operated 12 stores in New York and 6 in Puerto Rico, and an off-pric ...
. Rosenthal was announced to be continuing as president, but left the next year. In 1979, the Fulton Street store was closed as a result of the "long term unprofitability" of the location. Obliquely referencing the change in fortunes in the shopping district, it was reported that "the Martin's store in Brooklyn, which for many years had catered to the borough's affluent, 'was no longer related to the surrounding shopping area.'" (quoting George Seedman) After that pivotal event, within a few years, the remaining Martin's closed or changed names. The Offerman Building in Brooklyn was designated as a
New York City Landmark The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the New York City agency charged with administering the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting New York City's architecturally, historically, and c ...
in 2005.


References

{{reflist Defunct department stores based in New York City Defunct companies based in New York (state) Retail companies established in 1904 Retail companies disestablished in 1977 1904 establishments in New York City 1977 disestablishments in New York (state)