What recently defunct (or soon to be) store do you (will you) miss?

[hlthe2b]

A lot of nostalgic posts accompanied the news that Woolworths stores in G. Britain are closing--having all been gone from the US, where they originated- for more than a decade. There are tons of "mom and pop" stores I really really miss (including Denver's once best cooking and miscellaneous store, CooksMart, but these obviously wouldn't be known by most DUers.

So, what recently closed national retailers or businesses (or soon to be) will you miss the most?

I have to admit that Sharper Image is on the list for me... Yes, it was the bastion of conspicuous consumption for gizmos we really don't need, but the store was (at least in its Thalheimer-managed years) always interesting.

There are other retailers I miss, mainly because of the lack of choice their closing has created. How about you?

[Ian David]

1. We've lost two adult video stores this year. n/t

[hlthe2b]

2. chuckle... Were they "mom and pops"

:evilgrin:

[lame54]

15. Like this one...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VM1GIZSGH4g

[lame54]

16. .

[phusion]

3. Circuit City

I don't know what I'm going to do without their extremely overpriced crap. And, worst of all, I'll no longer be able to talk to their overworked and underpaid wage slaves.

:sarcasm:

[Morning Dew]

7. Worse for me, I won't be able to spend the better part of an evening

working on filling out their stupid mail in rebates.

I really don't like Circuit City.

[deadmessengers]

34. You know, I'll just be lost...

I don't know what I'll do with all the extra time I'll have from not having to persuade them that I don't need their crappy extended warranty.

Oh well, there's always worstbuy.

[NoodleBoy]

4. I dread the local stores we're going to lose

this area was just now finally starting to get a crop of locally-owned businesses, like pharmacies and restaurants and clothing stores and such, I never went to all of them or anything but it's going to be painful to watch these local stores close up shop.

[hlthe2b]

10. I love to window shop, especially with my dog...

along the shopping district that accompanies a Denver Mall... This area of several blocks used to house many many local restaurants and specialty one-of-a kind shops and it was so much fun. I would frequently tie her outside briefly to run in and take a look, frequently buying something or another that I might not absolutely need...

Now, in this popular area, there are lots of closed storefronts, that when reopen are increasingly sold to the brokerage houses, real estate offices, or nail salons. Yuck... I guess I should be glad the area is able to put something in these storefronts, rather than leaving them boarded over, but it is a sad state of affairs....And because the street traffic has dropped as a result, without even bars and restaurants drawing in business, it is increasingly no longer a safe refuge to walk at night with the dog.

Little things, seemingly, make such a damned big difference...

[taterguy]

5. All record stores

I'll miss browsing through a stack of albums.

Even though I'm as responsible as anyone for their demise since I buy most of my music online.

[FirstLight]

9. Mee too!

Rasputin's on Telegraph in Berkeley was a second home throuh my teens...

now i get my records at the flea market or garage sales... and I have been looking for an older model turntable and tape player...

I would rather listen to the records than to cd's. I like music to have that grainy sound, makes it more "real" to me :)

god, now that's nostalgic!

[juno jones]

23. I used to work for a leather vendor on telegraph

(mid-eighties) we always set up in front of Blondie's Pizza, Across from Rasputin's. I spent a lot of paychecks in Rasputin's, let me tell you...;)

[FirstLight]

33. Teehee! near Anna Purna? or was that closer up towards University?

Mid-80's to late 80's was my haunting time around there! we probably met!
Loved Blondies, and used to buy a LOT of jewelry from the guy on that block with silver rings, etc...

I graduated in 88 from Skyline HS, went to Chabot until I dropped out yrs later (smoked too much pot to focus) :rofl:

small world! But then again, I shouldn't be surprised to find fellow Berkeley-influenced people here at DU!!!!

[juno jones]

55. I think I know who you mean with the silver rings.

I had some awesome handmade jewelery that I got from vendors there. I loved the Berkeley street vendors, it was a privelege to be a part of that culture for a while...especially for a mid-western girl who was having her first love affair with the West Coast at the time.

I think Annapurna was down the street a block or so, same side as Blondie's as I recall. (been so many years) My boss at the time had won (they had sort of a lottery for spaces) the spot directly in front of Blondie's, so we were up towards the University. It was weird to go back in the 90's and find Rasputin's had moved down the block.

Yup, mid eighties. I was the punk with big boots, a mini skirt and purple hair....oh damn, we all were... :rofl:

edit to add: I worked some pretty high-profile jobs for awhile. I even wound up having somebody recognize me at a holiday market in Chicago where I was vending on account of one of my tats. They had seen me out on the street in Berkeley years earlier. I still have people approach me and say they think they've met me somewhere before.

[Mz Pip]

57. Fellow Berkeley influenced

and graduate here! :hi:

[hlthe2b]

14. Oh, yes.... Denver had a great Tower Record store open 365 days

While it was a chain store, it was bright, big, well stocked and open Christmas Day until late, as well as other holidays. SO, when you were so damned bored with holiday stuff, you could go down there and peruse (or listen to music) for hours. Never alone, either. There were always quite a few people who wandered by to happily come in for a while.

Now, that store is a "Container Store." Great, just what I wanted... an organizer store in place of a fun fun store with cool employees open 365 days a year.

[Morning Dew]

6. A lot of the large-ish regional retailers have disappeared.

Here in Minnesota, I miss Dayton's and Donaldson's - though I rarely had the spare money to shop at either.


I also miss the local news/comics retailer Shinder's . . . that was a family business that got sold and then run into the ground by the new owner ( a distant relative). It went down after nearly a hundred year run. Sad.

http://www.startribune.com/business/11217741.html

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

27. What wal-mart and the internet haven't done, the financial crisis is doing now.

I don't expect a lot of the mid-size national big box chains will survive the next six months.

[blondeatlast]

47. Yeah, I worked at one of those in Phoenix abck in the day, I even knew the daughter of the founder

quite well; ver nice lady. It was purchased by Dayton/Hudson (now TargetCorp) in the early 80s but they allowed us to keep the name and our operations were still local.

Now all the locals are gone.

[SpiralHawk]

8. "Sinnabon." - Rush 'Draft Dodger' Limbaugh (R-propagandist)

[slackmaster]

11. Definitely The Sharper Image even though I never bought anything from them

Their catalogs and stores were always very entertaining to browse.

[Frank Cannon]

50. I, too, miss the Sharper Image

They had the best "sound machines" available. And I get nostalgic remembering a time when I had so much disposable income, it wouldn't be unthinkable for me to just plunk down money on a foot massager/FM radio as a gift for someone.

Before the dark times. Before the Empire.

[LaurenG]

12. It already happened - the Mt Healthy Hardware, a local store

it's gone... another one, nearby in Loveland bit the dust too but I forgot it's name.

:(

[abbeyco]

13. I agree with Cooksmart - loved that store!

I hate to see Linens'n'Things going out of business - I have been a big fan and have shopped there since they first came to Denver. I've never really warmed up to Bed, Bath & Beyond.

Sharper Image always had cool stuff, but now I've turned to Brookstone & Hammacher Schlemmer for giving cool gizmos & gadgets.

[hlthe2b]

18. Hammacher Schlemmer was probably smart not to expand...

I've been to their NYC store and enjoy their catalogs, but I wish they had a store near me. There is just something about going into browse that is so appealing.


Cooksmart was great because of all the unrelated stuff they sold... It was always interesting to look around.

[lame54]

17. The town of Crawford

[ThomWV]

19. The local Chevy Dealer ...

[ProfessorGAC]

46. Really!

There's a Pontiac dealer here in our town that could be in trouble if GM shuts down the line. (A mistake in my opinion. Pontiac is an ideal intermediate product line with a sportier feel than most Chevy's, all Buicks, and all but one Caddy.)

I'm surprised to hear a Chevy dealer going under. That's a drag.
The Professor

[ThomWV]

52. Yep, and the Chrysler dealer folded last summer

[MineralMan]

20. I don't shop a lot,

except for groceries and the like. Big ticket items I generally buy used from folks who got bored with their toys or wanted newer, bigger ones.

Craig's List is good. My local hardware store is excellent, and does a great business because the family that runs it stocks what people want, rather than the stuff the big box stores want to sell. Their parking lot is always busy, and contractors shop there, too.

A friend owns a house built in 1919. Her kitchen faucet was leaking. My hardware store had the parts for her 90 year old faucet, and the guy there knew which ones they were.

The local Goodwill/Easter Seals store is really busy, too. Lots of great stuff in there. I just got a new down parka there. It's used, I guess, but you'd never know it. $8. North Face. Not a bad deal.

The local marine and boat business are closing. Never mind. My boat is 44 years old, and I don't see any reason to replace it. I catch fish from it just fine.

Lots of people are scaling back. I scaled back in 1974, after I quit the last job I ever worked for someone else. I never scaled back up, except to buy a house. That's paid for, now. Scaling back is a good thing. It punishes the environment less. You get to buy used stuff that is top of the line for not much money. The local farmer's market has great stuff, and that's definitely local.

After I moved to Minnesota, I had to buy a snowblower. A neighbor down the street put one out on the curb for $100. He'd bought a new one. A bigger one. He said the old one didn't run right. I changed the oil, put in a new spark plug, cleaned the carburetor, and tightened a few things. It runs great.

I guess I'm just an old hippie from the 70s, still living on the cheap. I'm 63 now. Life's still a blast.

[hlthe2b]

21. I buy little now as well... can't afford the conspicuous consumption

lifestyle... But, I do love to "look." My Mom was the queen of window shopping and rarely came home with much of anything... But it was a hobby that gave her a bit of exercise and a chance to get out in the world, even as her health started to fail.

I love walking and window shopping in the neighborhood, sitting outside to sip coffee and watching all the people and dogs (and there are always lots of dogs :loveya:) walk by. But, as the big box stores knock off all the small shops, leaving little but banks, brokerage houses, a real estate office or two, and the infinite nail and hair salons to take their place, well, that pleasure will soon disappear as well, at least for a while. That makes me incredibly sad.

[natrat]

22. mervyns-cheap basic clothing -like giving the finger to fashion

[hlthe2b]

24. yes... and Uptons (similar chain) when I livedin the South

I can never find clothes for myself at Macy's... Dillards, yes, Penney's sometimes, Nordstroms (who can afford), and when they were still in Denver (Lord and Taylors--occasionally for shirts, tops, sweater staples).

I now pay much more for the same mock turtleneck or simple cotton shell at Land's End, but none are American made,(though they are a far more socially conscious retailer than most).. Neither were these items American made at Mervyns or Uptons, but at least I didn't pay American-made prices for them. Oh, well...

[eleny]

30. Yes, Mervyns, too! I forgot them

[blondeatlast]

48. Me too. Ours will diappear completely any day now. nt

[Kceres]

25. Ace Hardware.

In our town a Lowe's is about to move down the street from the Ace. I know the Ace, a store that is just the right size to find everything you need, is going to close soon. I've gotten to know the employees at Ace over the years. They know my dog, give her treats when we go in. It will made me sad losing them.

[leftofthedial]

26. not all that recent, but my kids still miss Media Play

which shut down here a few years ago.

I don't spend money in stores except for groceries, so none of them much matter.

[hlthe2b]

28. Media Play and Sam Goody Records...

yes... long gone now...

[deadmessengers]

35. oops wrong thread

[eleny]

29. Denver Fabric

Down on Evans. Huge bolts of fabric. It was like a fabric store for professionals just like you find in New York.

I still miss the big Woolworths on 16th. It closed many years before I retired. But I loved going in there. The big candy counter that greeted you. And I miss the Denver Dry with the lovely Christmas window.

Denver Fabric is the one to close recently, just months ago. I would have made a trip downtown during the holidays to visit Woolworths and the Dry that always reminded me of home, NYC.

The Woolworths in Denver was the largest in the U.S., too.

Btw, I'm going to make sure shop at Thompson's Crafts on Wadsworth just north of Colfax on the west side of the street. It's been there forever, only takes cash and is still family run. It's right across from the new Walmart. A real cute, funky store that also sells basic art supplies in the back. So far, it's kept strong against giants like Michael's.

[hlthe2b]

31. I didn't know Denver Fabric had closed... I hadn't been in

for some time--don't get down that way that often.... Bummer.


I like the Meininger's Arts Store on Broadway, too... Lots of kitschy stuff, along with nice pens and stationary mixed in makes it an interesting... It seems to be doing ok.

[eleny]

32. I bet Meininger's makes it through all this

I don't paint, sketch etc. But a year doesn't go by when I just have to make the trip into Denver to shop there. I always find something interesting even if it's just colored pencils and coloring books to have some fun with or to find a gift. The place is a treasure house. When I was doing some printing on cloth they had just the things I needed without my having to shop online.

It's funny but - whenever I go in there I always feel like I'm not worthy! The staff can be somewhat snooty but if you need something, they've got it. I love the store.

:hi:

[deadmessengers]

36. Rockler's hardware

That place is like Toys' R Us for woodworkers. I can't imagine that they're going to make it through this.

[TankLV]

37. I don't miss ANY of the national retailers - I miss AM&A's, Sattlers, Kobachers, Hens & Kelly,

Hengerer's, and LL Berger's, just to name a few that were viable up until the late 70's or so...

Especially Sattler's 998 Broadway toy store during the holidays...boy does that date me...!!!

guess where these great stores all were!

now as I remember, I miss SS Kresge & Co., F&W Woolworth's, and GRANTS!

Especially the lunch counters and plastic car model aisles!!!

[hlthe2b]

41. So where were all these great (long gone) stores?

[TankLV]

42. Buffalo...

Used to have a great thriving shopping district downtown, with windows decorated in christmas, restaurants in the department stores...now it's just office buildings and dead after 5pm...

All went downhill when Big Steel and Manufacturing left town for "greener grass" elsewhere...I left too...but it could be worse - it could be Detroit...

[Jane Austin]

38. Mervyns

I bought a lot of my basics there - bras, slippers, tees, comforters, pillow cases, etc.

Plus, they had sales there on things like coffee makers and other small appliances when I needed them.

I pass the store site every day, and always feel a little sinking spell when I do.

[WinkyDink]

39. The Oldest Jewelry Store in America: Bixler's, Easton, PA.

http://www.mcall.com/news/local/all-bixlers1105-cn,0,4948491.story

[hlthe2b]

40. Wow... closing after 200 YEARS!

That hurts....

[LeftyMom]

43. Tower.

Local, awesome and sorely missed.

The best deal I ever got on books was when the Watt avenue store cleaned out their gaming book section and I got a shitpile of old White Wolf sourcebooks for $3 or less each.

[Nicole]

44. Linen 'n Things most recently

Montgomery Wards, TG&Y and Anthony's of yesteryear.

[hlthe2b]

45. Yes.. wow, it makes one very nostalgic...

My Dad was always a big Montgomery Wards shopper. I hadn't thought about TG&Y for years, but certainly that was an icon from my childhood. So sad that they are all going--leaving us with only WALMART, which I avoid. The many small towns of the US that have killed off their downtown districts upon bringing in Walmart--makes me very very sad.

[blondeatlast]

49. Imagine your local power center one year from now. Bleak, bleak, bleak.

We are losing the Linens 'n Things now; we may lose our Lowe's soon (Please, no--I have friends who work there!).

Pier One will be gone soon, I imagine Cost Plus will follow shortly; that leaves Barnes and Noble in that section alone (I bet they close some stores as well).

We'll be left with an empty plaza and a goddamned Wal-Mart Supercenter.

That is an exurban version of Hell. Ugh.

[hlthe2b]

51. Has Pier One announced bankrupcy/closure?

I hadn't heard.....

I think the B&N near me (Colorado Boulevard) will be safe for some time to come, given that they have an attached Starbucks that has always been open 24/7 365 days per year.... I've been in there at 2 or 3 in the morning-- even on holidays there is always a crowd. At least some of those regulars must be buying books.... But, I do try to give Tattered Cover some business as well. Admittedly, on books, the major difference in price does bite a bit.

[blondeatlast]

60. Their stocks are plunging and I had heard rumors to that effect

but a quick Google search on Pier 1 and closing yields nothing.

So far, ours is doing good business.

[wartrace]

53. Comp USA

It was nice to have a place that sold computer parts close to home. I now have to mail order EVERYTHING.

[hlthe2b]

54. I agree... the failure of Comp USA leaves essentially no place

(excluding the Apple Stores)to purchase computer equipment and add-ons, as well as to get that kind of advice. And, that includes, Best Buy--geebus the level of training and understanding I've encountered there is minimal at best


The failure of CompUSA had to be the best thing to happen to Apple-Macs... I wonder where the average Joe PC User is going now to get their hardware and software. I've been buying online for years, but has the average user started doing so now, as well?

[LWolf]

56. I don't know who might be closing locally.

I don't shop much. Since Home Depot and Lowes moved into town last year, the Ace Hardware store is vulnerable, and I'd miss them.

When the super walmart opened up at the same time as home depot and lowes, I was worried about the Fred Meyer I shop at, but while they have laid off people this fall, they are still going strong.

I hope the Barnes & Noble in the town south of mine survives.

I'm worried about the local feed store. Starting last winter, people have been downsizing their livestock, and major road work kept them cut off from easy access for 6 months. I hope they make it.

[librechik]

58. I still haven't recovered from the disappearance of Woolworth's

there was such a nice one on South Broadway--how i miss that lunch counter! and the one on 16th street was awesome.

I'm missing BB and B in Cherry Creek already. is it gone? I've been afraid to look.

[hlthe2b]

61. Hey Librechik...! You must be thinking Linens n Things...

which are closing. BB&B is doing just fine in Cherry Creek... I don't see it going anywhere, if anything the demise of L&T will give it a boost. They might not be so flexible on their 20% off coupons, though.



I was looking through some photos of small towns in the MidWest my folks lived in or spent considerable time. Rexall Drugs seemed to appear in most of them, complete with soda fountain. I hadn't thought about them in years, but along with Woolworths, TG&Y, MOntgomery Wards, A&P groceries, and so many others--long gone...

[Cleita]

59. I still miss Woolworth's, Newberry's and Thrifty Drug Stores here.

Although, Target, Wal-Mart and KMart have replaced some of their functions, they don't do it as well. I miss the lunch counters where you could get a donut and coffee for breakfast or a club sandwich for lunch. Often the accompanying coleslaw and potato salads were homemade by the lunch ladies themselves. I liked the styles of the counters that you could look at stuff that was waist high and not have rows of shelves to scan for what you wanted. Oh well, nostalgia brings tears to my eyes.