Hofheimer's was a

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...

-based chain of shoe stores that was once a leading East Coast retailer. Victor Strasburger founded the company with the three Hofheimer brothers in 1885. it specialized in upscale men's and women's footwear, including Florsheim shoes for men. One of the larger freestanding suburban stores was at

Wards Corner Wards Corner is a historical suburban shopping center and residential neighborhood in Norfolk, Virginia, located approximately five miles north of downtown and less than four miles southeast of Naval Station Norfolk. The shopping center originat ...

in Norfolk (the "Times Square of the South"), which opened as the chain's fourth store in 1952. The Wards Corner location was in the same building as a Rices Nachman's department store. It had a children's play area and two live

monkeys Monkey is a common name that may refer to most mammals of the infraorder Simiiformes, also known as simians. Traditionally, all animals in the group now known as simians are counted as monkeys except the apes. Thus monkeys, in that sense, co ...

in a glass enclosed cage. This building was demolished in 2000, and as of 2018, is the location of a

Walgreens Walgreens is an American pharmacy store chain. It is the second largest in the United States, behind CVS Pharmacy. As of March 2025, the company operated more than 8,700 stores in the U.S. Walgreens has been the subject of a number of lawsuit ...

pharmacy. Other major stores were at Norfolk's

Military Circle Mall Military Circle Mall, known as The Gallery at Military Circle Mall from 2002 to 2015, is a soon to be demolished abandoned enclosed shopping mall in Norfolk, Virginia. The mall opened in 1970. In October 2016 the Virginia Beach City Council rej ...

and on Granby St. in

Downtown Norfolk Downtown Norfolk serves as the traditional center of commerce, government, and culture in the Hampton Roads region. Norfolk, Virginia's downtown waterfront shipping and port activities historically played host to numerous and often noxious port an ...

. Lewis D. Hirschler, grandson of company founder Victor Strasburger, served as president from 1974 - 1985. In 1982,Lewis D. Hirschler's Obituary
/ref> he sold the company to Ward White Investments, Ltd. of

Northamptonshire, England Northamptonshire ( ; abbreviated Northants.) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Leicestershire, Rutland and Lincolnshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordsh ...

.UPI - Hofheimers sold to Ward White Investments (Aug. 16, 1982)
/ref> The retailer began to decline in the 1990s, and the Ward's Corner store closed in 1993. The company is now defunct, having filed for

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, w ...

bankruptcy in 1997 and closing for good in 1998.''Storefront: Hofheimer's Shoes To Close Doors After 113 Years'', The Daily Press, Newport News, VA - November 25, 1998
/ref> At the time, it had 150 employees and 20 stores, including one at Peninsula Town Center and another at Patrick Henry Mall.

References

External links

1995 status
Defunct retail companies of the United States Companies based in Norfolk, Virginia Defunct companies based in Virginia {{Virginia-stub