History of Woolworths

Woolworth's, the now-defunct American company formally called F.W. Woolworth & Co., helped popularize the five-and-dime variety store. Founded in 1878 by Frank Winfield Woolworth, the store grew to become one of the nation's largest retail chains. However, increasing competition forced the company to close its retail shops in the late '90s to focus on sporting-goods retailing. The company remains as Foot Locker Inc., but its famous five-and-dime stores exist only in Europe, Mexico and South Africa.

History

The retail chain that became known as Woolworth's started with a $300 loan to F.W. Woolworth. He based the first store in Utica, N.Y., but it failed within a year's time. A second store, this one based in Lancaster, Pa., was launched in 1879. It thrived, and led to the launch of more stores once Woolworth's brother, Charles Sumner Woolworth, entered the business.

Significance

Woolworth's introduced or popularized many familiar retail concepts. It became one of the first retailers to bring products out from behind counters, allowing customers to inspect and touch them. It partnered with other stores to boost purchasing power and undermine independent-store owners. Woolworth's popularized the concept of selling items at fixed prices, often a dime or a nickel. Later, Woolworth's introduced lunch counters to its retail stores. In 1979, it became the world's largest department-store chain.

Civil-Rights Milestone

A Woolworth's store in Greensboro, N.C., became the setting for an important episode in the civil rights movement in America on Feb. 1, 1960. Four African-American students sat at a Woolworth's lunch counter, which was segregated at the time. The students were denied service. They continued to sit. This example, considered to be a landmark episode in the fight for civil rights, launched many more sit-ins across the nation.

Growth

The Woolworth's chain began to evolve in the 1960s from the five-and-dime concept to the discount-store concept known today. Woolworth's created Woolco as a discount retailer in 1962, the same year Kmart, Wal-Mart and Target stores emerged. The chain then added specialty stores like Kinney Shoes, Foot Locker and Champs Sports.

End of Woolworth's

As Woolworth's pursued expansion through specialty retailers, the department-store foundation of the company declined. Woolco shut its doors in 1983. Ten years later, Woolworth's closed more than 400 of its stores in an effort to restructure. By 1997, the rest of the stores were shuttered and the corporate name was changed to Venator. In 2001, the company changed its name again to Foot Locker, reflecting its top-performing unit.

Fun Fact

The company's one-time headquarters, the Woolworth Building in New York, N.Y., held the record for world's tallest building from 1913, when it was completed, until 1930. It remained the company's headquarters until 1998, when it was purchased by the Venator Group.