Macy’s at the opening of the Hillsdale Center in the late 50’s

On October 28th, 1858, Capt. Rowland Hussey Macy opened his fifth dry goods store after his first four failed.

After his four failed attempts in Massachusetts between 1843 and 1855, Macy moved to New York City and opened his latest store, the R.H.Macy’s & Co. on 6th Street that was considerably north of the dry goods retail stores of the time.  In spite of the risky location, Macy brought in $11.08, equivalent of $303. Macy’s logo has always been the red star which was a tattoo that R.H. had gotten when he was a whaler.

Macy’s opened their flagship Herald Square location in 1902 that has since grown to become the world’s largest department store in 1924.  It is now 2.2 million square feet.

Having traveled to Paris a number of times in the past, my wife and I have already visited most of the key tourist attractions from Notre Dame to the Eiffel Tower.  But in all of our time in Paris, we never thought to visit any bicycle shops.  Since we are both avid cyclist, we realized this was an oversight that need to be rectified on our recent trip.

Alex Singer was our first shop to visit.  To be honest, I was not seeking out legendary service but rather to see one of the last shops of an era that is dying out, the era of the constructeurs.

“During the “Golden Age,” small makers built amazing bicycles that transcended their function to become a form of art. Their craftsmanship was not limited to the frame, but included hand-made derailleurs, brakes, stems, racks and other components. The entire bicycle was carefully designed and crafted as a unit, combining function and beauty. Famous makers like René Herse, Alex Singer, Jo Routens and others spent countless hours on each bicycle in their search for perfection.” -Jan Heine from Bicycle Quarterly

53 Rue Victor Hugo, Home of Singer Bicycles

Overhead sign

Bicycles with custom stems and racks

New bicycles and old trophies

Panniers for the cycle-touriste

Hammered fenders and other goodies

Center pulls, side pulls and single rings

New stock and old bikes

1953 Alex Singer Bicycle ridden by Ernest Csuka

Photo of Ernest and Leone Czuka racing the 1954 Poly de Huizingen

Recent Alex Singer

Stylish crankset, matching bottle cage and fenders complete the look

The cockpit of a newer model

No register, just hand addition on a scrap of paper and a cash drawer

Custom cassette or freewheel anyone?

The sanctum sanctorum, where the bikes are built

Made in Paris Exhibition

Alex Singer Bicycle at Made in Paris Exhibit

Detail from Alex Singer Made in Paris Bicycle

Square Louison Bobet

Continue reading →

Zion Cooperative Mercantile Institution 1910

On October 9th, 1868, the first full-line department store in the United States is opened in Salt Lake City, Utah.  Brigham Young of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) founded the Zion Cooperative Mercantile Institution (ZCMI) to serve the people of Salt Lake City, Utah (SLC).

Continue reading →

Southdale Center circa 1958
MN Historical Society

On October 8th, 1956, Southdale Mall opens in Edina, MN. It is the oldest fully enclosed climate-controlled mall in the United States.

The head of Dayton’s Department Store commissioned a study that determined that Minnesota only has 126 “ideal shopping weather days” a year.  With that in mind, Donald Dayton hired Victor Gruen to design and build a fully enclosed shopping mall.  The original design for the 500 acres included the mall, houses, a school, medical center and a park with a lake.  The mall and the medial center were all that were ever completed.

75,000 people attended opening day taking full advantage of the free parking arranged in animal-themed sections.  There were 72 smaller shops and two anchor department stores.  60 years later, Southdale is still serving the shoppers of Minnesota.