Butler Brothers was a retailer and wholesale supplier based in Chicago. It was founded in 1877 as a

mail-order Mail order is the buying of goods or services by mail delivery. The buyer places an order for the desired products with the merchant through some remote methods such as: * Sending an order form in the mail * Placing a telephone call * Placing a ...

company by Charles Hamblet Butler, George H. Butler and

Edward Burgess Butler Edward Burgess Butler (December 16, 1853 – February 20, 1928) was an American businessman who founded Butler Brothers department stores. He served as the first president of the Pasadena Society of Artists. Biography He was born on December 16 ...

History

In the 1920s, Butler Brothers moved into retailing with a chain of "Scott" and "L. C. Burr" stores. In the early 1930s, they developed the

Ben Franklin Stores Ben Franklin is a chain of five and dime and arts and crafts stores found primarily in small towns throughout the United States, currently owned by Promotions Unlimited of Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin. They are organized using a franchise system, ...

and Federated Stores, both of which were franchised

five and dime A variety store (also five and dime (historic), pound shop, or dollar store) is a retail store that sells general merchandise, such as apparel, automotive parts, dry goods, toys, hardware, home furnishings, and a selection of groceries. It us ...

stores. Most were in small towns. By 1936 there were 2,600 Ben Franklin stores and 1,400 Federated stores.. In the 1940s and 1950s, Butler Brothers was one of the largest wholesalers in the country. Unlike many modern franchises, which seek to present a uniform identity to consumers, the Ben Franklin franchise largely benefitted dime store owners by making weekly shipments from their warehouses, where tens of thousands of items were kept in inventory. Not only could a store owner order merchandise on Friday and receive it on Tuesday to replenish empty shelves, but by consolidating shipments, saved a considerable amount on freight, and found it easier to manage his inventory. Butler Brothers also organized special sale events every few weeks. Stores could order salebills with their own names on them, and in many cases, with sale prices they chose for the merchandise. Manufacturers would offer special prices to get the extra sales inherent by being included in such large promotions, which Butler Brothers would pass along to stores and consumers. In the 1950s the company built 4 complete department stores in

Greater Los Angeles Greater Los Angeles is the second-largest metropolitan region in the United States with a population of 18.5 million in 2021, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino Coun ...

Lakewood Center Lakewood Center is a super-regional shopping mall in Lakewood, California. Lakewood Center opened in 1952 and was enclosed in 1978. The interior mall is anchored by Costco, Forever 21, JCPenney, Macy's, a Round One Entertainment center, and Targe ...

(1952), Downtown

Alhambra The Alhambra (, ; ar, الْحَمْرَاء, Al-Ḥamrāʾ, , ) is a palace and fortress complex located in Granada, Andalusia, Spain. It is one of the most famous monuments of Islamic architecture and one of the best-preserved palaces of the ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, and

Van Nuys Van Nuys () is a neighborhood in the central San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. Home to Van Nuys Airport and the Valley Municipal Building, it is the most populous neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley. History In 1909, t ...

. In February 1960 the company was bought out by

City Products Corp A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

of Ohio, a company which had been in existence since 1894 as an ice company, for $53 million plus assumption of Butler Brothers liabilities.

References

External links

*Ronald D. Michman, and Alan J. Greco; ''Retailing Triumphs and Blunders: Victims of Competition in the New Age of Marketing Management'' {{ISBN, 0-89930-869-4 *Sandra S. Vance and Roy V. Scott; ''Butler Brothers and the Rise and Decline of the Ben Franklin Stores: A Study in Franchise Retailing'' (1993)
City Products
Economy of Minneapolis Defunct companies based in Minnesota Defunct companies based in Chicago Companies based in Lake County, California Companies based in Oregon Companies based in California Newberg, Oregon Lakeport, California

History

See also

References

External links