Circa-1880
The first of our Big Three merchandisers originated in, and operated out of, Chicago. Aaron Montgomery Ward started a mail-order business in August 1872, with George R. Thorne becoming a business partner 2 years later. The target Montgomery Ward customer was the rural farmer.
At the time, those living outside larger cities had few shopping options, with prices charged for merchandise often being exorbitant. Goods sold by Montgomery Ward were much cheaper. The economy of purchasing from Wards brought the fledgling firm a great deal of business, as did the introduction of an unconditional money-back guarantee, in 1875.
Aaron Montgomery Ward (1844-1913), who originally hailed from Chatham, New Jersey. He went on the establish "The Cheapest Cash House on Earth."
Photo from Wikipedia
Competition from Sears, Roebuck & Company, another Chicago-centric mail-order house, intensified in the 1890s. By the turn of the century, Sears had gained a competitive edge. At the time, both Montgomery Ward and Sears shipped merchandise to customers via railroad.
In 1913, the U.S. Post Office instituted its parcel post system, which was of great benefit to both Wards and Sears. To handle all of the new mail order business, Wards built large, multistory Mail Order Plants. These warehouses could encompass up to 700,000 square feet. By 1924, there were "branch houses" in Chicago, Fort Worth, Kansas City, Oakland, Portland and Saint Paul.
By 1922, so-called Retail Stores were operating in Mail Order Plants. Each unit covered around 30,000 square feet. A new concept was introduced four years later. The first Chain Store (or "merchandise display") opened, in Marysville, Kansas, in August 1926. Whereas the Wards Retail Store provided goods to customers in large cities, a Chain Store would serve patrons in small towns across America.
The inaugural Chain Store in Kansas encompassed only 5,000 square feet. Its function was to display an ever-changing selection of the thousands of items carried by Montgomery Ward. Only automobile tires, inner tubes, batteries and radiators were sold over the counter. Any other merchandise had to be ordered out of the Wards catalog. This concept was abandoned in February 1928, when customers were permitted to purchase -and possess- all merchandise carried by the store.
The Kansas City Mail Order Plant was completed in July 1914. By 1928, there was a coast-to-coast network of eight major "branch house" facilities. Each one contained a Wards Retail Store.
Photo from the Montgomery Ward & Company Annual Report 1928
Drawing from Montgomery Ward & Company
