S. Kann Sons Co., or more commonly Kann's was a department store based in

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It was the District's second department store and pioneered the one-price policy and "

the customer is always right __NOTOC__ "The customer is always right" is a motto or slogan which exhorts service staff to give a high priority to customer satisfaction. It was popularised by pioneering and successful retailers such as Harry Gordon Selfridge, John Wanamake ...

" concept in retailing on the Washington, D.C. retail scene. The stores allowed consumers to return goods for cash.

History

The company was founded in Washington, D.C. in 1893, by Louis, Solomon, and Sigmund Kann. The Baltimore family originally came to Washington in 1890, to liquidate Abe Kaufman's store at 909 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, and returned to establish a permanent business. The store remained family owned until 1971, when it was sold to L. S. Good and Co. of

Wheeling, West Virginia Wheeling is a city in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Located almost entirely in Ohio County, of which it is the county seat, it lies along the Ohio River in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains and also contains a tiny portion extendin ...

. The company closed in 1975.

Flagship store

The main store of S. Kann Sons Co. was located at 8th Street and Market Place, N.W., at Pennsylvania Avenue, in Washington, D.C.'s downtown shopping district. After founding at this location in 1893, the company expanded into neighboring storefronts until 1913, when it embarked on a major expansion to four stories and creation of a public dining room. In 1959, the company received approval from the Fine Arts Commission, to integrate its disparate 19th Century storefronts with anodized aluminum sheeting, as part of a $500,000 renovation and modernization project. After its closing in 1975, the store remained vacant until purchased for $4.275 million in 1978, by the

Pennsylvania Avenue Development Corporation Pennsylvania Avenue National Historic Site is a National Historic Site in the city of Washington, D.C. Established on September 30, 1965, the site is roughly bounded by Constitution Avenue, 15th Street NW, F Street NW, and 3rd Street NW. The hi ...

(PADC). The PADC purchased the site for redevelopment as housing. On March 31, 1979, a fire at the flagship store resulted in its immediate demolition. At a hearing before the U.S. Senate, D.C. fire marshal Carmel Del Bazo reported to Senator

Patrick Leahy Patrick Joseph Leahy (; born March 31, 1940) is an American politician and attorney who is the senior United States senator from Vermont and serves as the president pro tempore of the United States Senate. A member of the Democratic Party, L ...

that "the possibility of an accidental cause of the fire is excluded." After demolition, the site immediately across from the

National Archives Building The National Archives Building, known informally as Archives I, is the headquarters of the United States National Archives and Records Administration. It is located north of the National Mall at 700 Pennsylvania Avenue, Northwest, Washington ...

remained vacant until redeveloped as

Market Square The market square (or sometimes, the market place) is a square meant for trading, in which a market is held. It is an important feature of many towns and cities around the world.Hecht Company Hecht's, also known as Hecht Brothers, Hecht Bros. and the Hecht Company, was a large chain of department stores that operated mainly in the mid-Atlantic and southern region of the United States. The firm originated in Baltimore, Maryland. By 20 ...

opened its store at

Parkington Shopping Center Ballston Quarter, formerly known as Ballston Common Mall, originally opened as Parkington Shopping Center, was one of the first major suburban shopping centers in the Washington, D.C., area. It opened in 1951 and was the nation's first shopping ce ...

, on November 16, 1951, Kann's opened its store at N. Fairfax Drive and N. Kirkwood Rd., in

Arlington County, Virginia Arlington County is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The county is situated in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from the District of Columbia, of which it was once a part. The county ...

. The $4.5 million, 3 story store, known as Kann's Virginia, opened in conjunction with the neighboring

Virginia Square Shopping Center The Virginia Square Shopping Center in Arlington County, Virginia, United States opened in early 1952, to complement the adjoining Kann's-Virginia store. At opening, the 15-store center included a Giant supermarket, People's Drug, Fanny Farmer c ...

. At opening, the store featured imported squirrel monkeys from Brazil named Teeny, Weeny, Eeny, and Miney to entertain children in the shoe department; a package assembly system using conveyor belts; "Kannteen" restaurant; customer lounge; and hospital room with nurse in attendance. After closing in 1975, the store was acquired in 1979, by

George Mason University George Mason University (George Mason, Mason, or GMU) is a public research university in Fairfax County, Virginia with an independent City of Fairfax, Virginia postal address in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area. The university was orig ...

, which used the building for its Arlington campus. The building was used first for the law school and later for the School of Public Policy. The building was demolished in 2021.

References

{{reflist Defunct department stores based in Washington, D.C. Defunct companies based in Washington, D.C. Retail companies established in 1893 1893 establishments in Washington, D.C. Retail companies disestablished in 1975 1975 disestablishments in Washington, D.C.