Neisner's or Neisner Brothers was a chain of

variety stores 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 ...

in North America.

History

The brothers Abraham and Joseph Neisner opened their first variety store in

Rochester, New York Rochester () is a City (New York), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, the county seat, seat of Monroe County, New York, Monroe County, and the fourth-most populous in the state after New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffalo, ...

, in 1911. They incorporated the company in New York in 1916, by which time they had five stores, selling merchandise from 5 cents to one dollar. The company acquired a large interest in

British Home Stores British Home Stores, commonly abbreviated to BHS and latterly legally styled BHS Ltd, was a British department store chain, primarily selling clothing and household items. In its later years, the company began to expand into furniture, electron ...

, a chain of similar stores in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

in 1929, but sold its interest in the late 1930s. The company prospered during the Depression, and by 1935, Neisner's had 103 stores in 63 cities in 16 states. Abraham Neisner died in 1933, whilst travelling aboard the . Neisner's was later headed by Joseph's son Fred Neisner, who became

chairman of the board The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

, with Abraham's son Melvin Neisner, as company president. During the 1960s and '70s, the company created the Big N division, a format which resembled the big box stores of today. These were located primarily in New York and several other northeastern states. Neisner's petitioned for

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...

protection on 1 December 1977 and the

Ames Department Stores Ames Department Stores Inc. was an American chain of discount stores based in Rocky Hill, Connecticut, United States. The company was founded in 1958 with a store in Southbridge, Massachusetts, and at its peak operated 700 stores in 20 states, i ...

acquired the chain in November 1978.

Notes

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External links

Lehman Brothers 20th Century Business Archives
Defunct discount stores of the United States Five and dimes Retail companies established in 1911 Retail companies disestablished in 1978 Companies based in Rochester, New York 1911 establishments in New York (state) 1978 disestablishments in New York (state)