Chappell's was a family-owned
department store
A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store made a dramatic app ...
chain based in
Syracuse, New York
Syracuse ( ) is a City (New York), city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, Onondaga County, New York, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in the state of New York following New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffa ...
. It opened in 1896 and remained in business until 1994. At its peak, it operated ten stores in the Syracuse area, Cortland, Watertown and Massena. In no particular order, malls that had a Chappell's store included Great Northern Mall (Clay, NY); Western Lights Plaza (Valley area of Syracuse, NY); Northern Lights (Mattydale, NY); Shoppingtown Mall (Dewitt,NY); Penn-Can Mall (Cicero, NY); Carousel Center (known as Destiny USA after 2012 in Syracuse,NY); Shop City Plaza (Syracuse,NY); Fingerlakes Mall (Auburn, NY); Seneca Mall (Liverpool, NY); Salmon Run Mall (Watertown, NY). There was also a stand alone store in downtown Syracuse.
In January 1992, the corporation filed for bankruptcy protection under
Chapter 11
Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, wheth ...
. As part of reorganization, four of the stores closed.
Under pressure from creditors, chairman Charles A. Chappell Jr., grandson of the founder, sold the company and remaining six stores to
Bon-Ton Stores
Bon-Ton Holdings Inc. is an American online retailer and former department store chain founded in 1898. After rapid expansion in the 1990s and early 2000s, the original company had financial troubles, ultimately filing for bankruptcy in 2018 ...
in October 1991.
References
Defunct department stores based in New York State
Defunct companies based in Syracuse, New York
American companies established in 1896
Retail companies established in 1896
Retail companies disestablished in 1994
1896 establishments in New York (state)
1994 disestablishments in New York (state)
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