Circa-1950

By the mid-20th century, Sears was working with three retail store formats. Catalog & Appliance locations were no larger than 24,000 square feet. They sold only home appliances, tools, lawn & garden equipment and bicycles. Naturally, there was also a catalog order department.

A somewhat larger full-line store encompassed between 25,000 and 99,000 square feet. These generally carried lines of apparel, shoes, fashion accessories, home furnishings, large and small appliances, electronics, floor coverings, hardware & paint. They also included a Catalog sales desk and sometimes had a freestanding or attached Sears Auto Center. 

Even larger full-line Sears locations ranged from 100,000 to 373,000 square feet and featured expanded lines of merchandise carried by the smaller full-line store. These larger locations also had a coffee shop and always included a Sears Auto Center.

EARLY SEARS SHOPPING MALL STORES (Catalog & Appliance):

*SHOPPERS' WORLD, Framingham, MA (1951)

*LEVITTOWN SHOP-A-RAMA, Bucks County, PA (1955)

*LOS ALTOS CENTER, Long Beach, CA (1955)