Frank W. Woolworth

 F.W. Woolworth was the retail phenomenon of the twentieth century. The mass-market shop sold factory-made goods at rock bottom prices. It was the first brand to go global, building to more than 3,000 near-identical stores across the world.

He was the founder of F. W. Woolworth Company and the operator of variety stores known as "Five-and-Dimes" or dimestores, which featured a low-priced selection of merchandise.
At its height it generated such riches that its Founder was able to put up the world's tallest building in their time and pay for it in cash. Its shares were the gold standard of the New York and London markets, paying dividends that others could only dream of.

Part of its magic was an ability to adapt to fit into different local communities and to 'go native', without sacrificing its identity. Shoppers in the UK considered 'Woolies' as British as fish and chips, while Americans continued to call the chain 'the five-and-ten'.

Early Life

Frank Winfield Woolworth was born in Rodman, New York on 13 April 1852. At the age of fifteen he gave up life on his father's farm to seek his fortune working in a shop in Watertown. Despite studying commerce and book-keeping at night school, his boss, William Moore, found him useless as a Shop Assistant. Instead the young man took charge of display and stock management. One of his jobs was to set up a table of fixed price five cent goods, which proved such a hit that in 1879, with Moore's support, he branched out on his own, setting up one of America's early fixed price stores.

After a false start in Utica, New York, he relocated to the Amish country of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, opening a Great Five Cent Store on 21 June 1879. It was a great success and later the same year his younger brother, Charles Sumner Woolworth, joined as Manager of a second store in nearby Harrisburg. Ten cent lines were added in 1881, creating the first Five and Ten Cent store chain.


At 20 years of age F. W. Woolworth found work in exchange for room and board at a local dry goods store, and after his employers held a successful clearance sale he saw the possibilities of a discount store. His key innovations were having the merchandise on open display instead of behind the counter, and having prices plainly marked instead of encouraging haggling. With borrowed funds he opened his first F.W. Woolworth store in the outskirts of Utica, New York in 1879, but the store closed the following year. Deciding that his problem had been a poor location, he opened a new store in downtown Lancaster, Pennsylvania in 1881. Within months he was opening multiple stores in business partnerships with local retailers, and within a few years Woolworth was a millionaire. In 1909 he opened his first store in England, and in 1913 the company opened its new headquarters in New York's Woolworth Building -- then the tallest building in the world.

Father: John Hubbell Woolworth (farmer, b. 16-Apr-1821)
Mother: Fanny McBrier Woolworth (m. 14-Jan-1851)
Brother: Charles Sumner Woolworth ("Sum", founder of C. S. Woolworth dept. stores, b. 1-Aug-1856)
Wife: Jennie Creighton Woolworth (b. circa 1853, m. 11-Jun-1876, d. 1924, three daughters)
Daughter: Helena Maud Woolworth McCann (b. 17-Jul-1878)
Daughter: Edna Woolworth (b. 1883, d. 1918)
Daughter: Jessie May Woolworth Donahue
There can be little doubt that if Frank Woolworth was starting out today it would be on the Internet, with its low costs and mass reach. But that is cold comfort for those who loved and cherished the stores in Britain, Canada and the USA. Fortunately the German company survives, along with some former British subsidiaries overseas in Zimbabwe, Barbados and the West Indies and a small chain in Mexico. But for most people these are a long way to walk for some pic'n'mix candy and a light bulb.


The Company

The F.W. Woolworth Co. had the first five-and-dime stores, which sold discounted general merchandise at fixed prices, usually five or ten cents, undercutting the prices of other local merchants. Woolworth, as the stores popularly became known, was one of the first American retailers to put merchandise out for the shopping public to handle and select without the assistance of a sales clerk. Earlier retailers had kept all merchandise behind a counter and customers presented the clerk with a list of items they wished to buy.

After working in Augsbury and Moore dry goods store in Watertown, New York, Frank Winfield Woolworth obtained credit from his former boss, William Moore, along with some savings, to buy merchandise and open the "Woolworth's Great Five Cent Store" in Utica, New York, on February 22, 1878. The store failed and closed in May 1878, after Frank earned enough money to pay back William Moore. Frank soon made a second attempt, and opened his "Woolworth's Great Five Cent Store", using the same sign, on June 21, 1879, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Lancaster proved a success, and Frank never forgot the city for the rest of his life. Frank wanted to open a second store in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and so he asked his brother Charles Sumner "Sum" Woolworth to join him by managing it. The Harrisburg store opened as, "5¢ Woolworth Bro's Store" on July 19, 1879. After a falling-out with the landlord, that store moved to York, Pennsylvania, opening in March 1880. That store did not last long either, closing three months later. Frank searched for a larger, low-rent building. He found an ideal location in Scranton, Pennsylvania, at 125 Penn Avenue, and opened their "5¢ & 10¢ Woolworth Bro's Store" on November 6, 1880, with Sum as manager. The Scranton store is where Sum fully developed the brothers' "5¢ & 10¢" merchandising model. Sum spent a lot of time working the sales floor, talking with customers and employees. He often personally served customers. Sales grew steadily. By 1881, at Frank's suggestion, Sum bought out his brother's share of the Scranton store in two installments, in January 1881 and 1882. This made Sum the first Woolworth Bro's franchisee.

In 1884, confident enough to open another store, Sum partnered with his long-time friend Fred Kirby to open a store in Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania, a neighboring town to the west of Scranton. Fred had been working as the head of wholesale operations at Augsbury and Moore of Watertown, New York. Each man put up $600 to launch the Wilkes-Barre store called "Woolworth and Kirby". Fred managed the new store, and while sales were initially poor, the store soon caught on. By 1887 he used his profits to buy out Sum, and expand the store under his name. Sum and Fred remained the best of friends. During this time, Frank was expanding with more stores. Sum's approach was different; he worked to perfect the look and feel of his Scranton store. It had mahogany counters with glass dividers and glass-fronted showcases. The store was brightly lit, new, and the wooden floor was polished to a lustrous shine. The layout was soon adopted by Frank for his F. W. Woolworth stores and became the standard as the two brothers persuaded family members and former co-workers from Moore's to join them in forming a 'friendly rival syndicate' of five-and-ten-cent stores. Each of the syndicate chain's stores looked similar inside and out, but operated under its founder's name. Frank Woolworth provided much of the merchandise, encouraging the rivals to club together to maximize their inventory and purchasing power.

The F. W. Woolworth Company (often referred to as Woolworth's, or Woolworth) was a retail company that was one of the original pioneers of the five-and-dime store. It was arguably the most successful American and international five-and-dime, setting trends and creating the modern retail model which stores follow worldwide today.

The first Woolworth store was opened by Frank Winfield Woolworth on February 22, 1878, as "Woolworth's Great Five Cent Store" in Utica, New York. Though it initially appeared to be successful, the store soon failed. Searching for a new location, a friend suggested Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Using the sign from the Utica store, Frank opened his first successful "Woolworth's Great Five Cent Store" on July 18, 1879, in Lancaster. Frank brought his brother, Charles Sumner Woolworth, into the business.

The two Woolworth brothers pioneered and developed merchandising, direct purchasing, and sales and customer service practices commonly used today. Despite growing to be one of the largest retail chains in the world through most of the 20th century, increased competition led to its decline beginning in the 1980s. The chain went out of business in July 1997, when the company decided to focus on the Foot Locker division and renamed itself Venator Group. By 2001, the company focused exclusively on the sporting goods market, changing its name to the present Foot Locker, Inc. (NYSE: FL)

Retail chains using the Woolworth name survive in Germany, Austria, Mexico, and, until the start of 2009, in the United Kingdom. The similarly named Woolworths supermarkets in Australia and New Zealand are operated by Australia's largest retail company Woolworths Limited, a separate company with no historical links to the F. W. Woolworth Company or Foot Locker, Inc. However, Woolworths Limited did take their name from the original company, as it had not been registered or trademarked in Australia at the time. Similarly, in South Africa, Woolworths Holdings Limited operates a Marks & Spencer-like store and uses the Woolworth name but has never had any connection with the American company. The property development company Woolworth Group in Cyprus began life as an offshoot of the British Woolworth's company, originally operating Woolworth's department stores in Cyprus. In 2003 these stores were rebranded Debenhams, but the commercial property arm of the business retained the Woolworth's name.



Sum Woolworth continued to maintain his home base in Scranton, PA. He was not the type to get embroiled in the politics, as executives of the different chains sought to establish themselves in the merger. As he did from the beginning, Sum concentrated on improving stores, particularly in his native Pennsylvania, and training up-and-coming managers. Those managers eventually dispersed across the entire company, setting the style and tone of Woolworth stores worldwide.

In 1900, Frank launched his first development plan in the city of his first success, Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Rather than just enlarging his store on North Queen Street, he bought up properties along the street in an area which was not considered a "good" side of town. By keeping everything quiet and in that area, real estate prices were not inflated. When he finished the real estate purchases, he announced his plan to build a skyscraper, a building with five floors of offices above a large store. The roof had a garden and an open-air theater. The theater was a huge hit in town, and soon became the city's social center. This project was something of a dress rehearsal for his next venture.
Tea cup ballet, a 1935 photograph by Olive Cotton with some inexpensive cups and saucers from Woolworths.
Second successful "Woolworth Bros" store, Scranton, PA. Later bought by brother Charles "Sum", becoming the first "C. S. Woolworth" store, and eventually merged into the F. W. Woolworth Company.

In 1910, Frank Woolworth took another leap and commissioned the design and construction of the Woolworth Building in New York City. A pioneering early skyscraper, it was designed by American architect Cass Gilbert, a graduate of the MIT architecture school.[9] The building was entirely paid for in cash. It was completed in 1913 and was the tallest building in the world until 1930. It also served as the company’s headquarters until it was sold by the F.W. Woolworth Company’s successor, the Venator Group (now Foot Locker), in 1998.
FW Woolworth store in Providence. RI. Circa 1930–1945

Frank Woolworth, president of F. W. Woolworth, Corporation, died in 1919, in Glen Cove, New York. Sum's demeanor made him the perfect candidate to head the F. W. Woolworth Corporation after the death of his brother. He was non-confrontational, as everyone else positioned themselves in the company. The Board of Directors unanimously asked Sum to take on the Presidency. With his infamous modesty he declined. He did, however, agree to take the new role of Chairman. Company Treasurer, Hubert Parson, took the Presidency. Over the following twenty-five years, Sum saw four Presidents come and go. He gave each one quiet-spoken advice and good counsel. As Chairman, he facilitated debate and ensured issues were properly confronted and argued out by the Board.


When Woolworths first flung open its doors in New York in 1879, it was the Victorian equivalent of the £1 shop, selling everything from stationery to dish cloths for just five cents. But like other American exports, the chain would soon become a quintessentially British institution, with a presence on almost every high street and a unique place in the hearts of the nation's shoppers.
In the 99 years since it established a UK presence in Liverpool, millions of us have wandered down its aisles in search of our first record or to choose a pair of cheap football boots.
Founded by Frank Winfield Woolworth, a brash, anglophile American who claimed he could trace his family routes back to Wooley in Cambridgeshire, Woolworths had dozens of outlets across the US by the time it arrived on British shores, and its owner had already made his fortune.
Woolworth travelled to Europe to source goods for the company and harboured an ambition to bring his American retailing sensation to the old country. "I believe that a good penny and sixpence store, run by a live Yankee, would be a sensation here," he wrote in his diary.
His instincts were right, although it was 19 years before he was finally able to prove it.
On his first visit to Europe, following a long voyage across the Atlantic that left him seasick and disorientated, Woolworth's ship docked in Liverpool and he chose the city, then at the height of its economic power, as the location for his first British store.
It opened in Church Street on Friday November 5 1909 to enthusiastic reviews from the local press. "The handsome premises were thronged the whole time they were open," the Liverpool Courier reported. "6d is the highest price charged for any single article in the establishment, but the variety of articles obtainable is infinite'.

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Predictably, perhaps, the Daily Mail, was less enthusiastic, declaring the American upstarts had chosen Liverpool so they could make a quick escape back home once their venture failed, leaving their unpaid debts behind them.
Within a generation, however, there were nearly 500 stores in Britain, run by Woolworth's protégé William Stephenson. a young freight clerk he met in a Staffordshire pottery. By the time Stephenson retired in 1948, he had built the British arm into a huge concern, floating it on the London Stock Exchange and becoming one the country's richest men.
The company expanded rapidly. In the mid-1920s, it was opening a store every 17 days, to the delight of local councillors who regarded the arrival of its distinctive red fascia as a stamp of approval for their town.
The 1931 flotation gave the British management increased confidence and autonomy from the head office in New York and, the following year, Woolworth's successor, Byron Miller, observed: "The child has long since outgrown the parent, generating more profit and taking hold more quickly than the American company ever did."
After the second world war, growth stagnated as competitors began to open self-service stores, an innovation Woolworths was quick to copy but slow to roll out. The first Woolworths to dispense with traditional counters and serving staff opened in Cobham, Surrey, in March 1955, but the revamp was only used in new stores. Rivals, including supermarkets, who rolled out the new concept faster, soon began to eat into its market share.
In the 1970s, an average of 15 stores were closed each year to fund the renovation of more modern outlets but, at the start of the 1980s, Woolworths still had 1,000 shops and was beginning to expand into out-of-town locations.

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In 1997, the US Woolies, now owned by a rival American retailer, announced it was closing its remaining 400 FW Woolworth stores, but its British arm remained in rude health. It became part of retail giant Kingfisher, owner of B&Q, but was floated as a separate company in 2001.
Since then, it has struggled to fend for itself, battling stock shortages, facing an aborted bid attempt by retail billionaire Sir Philip Green, issuing profit warnings and failing to persuade a new generation of shoppers to visit its increasingly unfashionable stores.
The enthusiasm which greeted its arrival in the UK has been replaced by indifference from consumers and, aside from the pick and mix confectionery counter, it is no longer clear what the store is for. Unlike the shoe polish, tea towels and cheap china plates it stocks, Woolies has outlived its usefulness and many of its products can be bought more cheaply elsewhere.
Now Woolworths itself likely to be sold for £1, an irony that Frank Woolworth would probably not have appreciated.
· This article was amended on Wednesday November 26 2008. We misspelt Cobham. This has been corrected.

Woolworth Co., in full F.W. Woolworth Co.,
Woolworth Co. [Credit: C Ford]
former American chain of general-merchandise retail stores based on the concept of the five-and-ten (i.e., a store that sells all items in stock for 10 cents or less). Woolworth evolved into a multinational corporation with a large collection of specialty retail stores on four continents. Its headquarters were in New York City. The company was founded by Frank Winfield Woolworth (1852–1919), the originator of the five-and-ten variety store.

Woolworth founded his first five-cent stores in Utica, N.Y., and Lancaster, Pa., in 1879. The latter store was successful, especially after the price ceiling was raised to 10 cents, and in the next decade Woolworth opened some 21 more stores in towns in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Delaware, and Connecticut, the majority of which were financed and managed in partnerships. By the end of 1904 there were 120 stores in 21 states extending westward as far as Colorado. Woolworth founded his success on volume buying, counter-display merchandising, and cash-and-carry transactions.

In 1905 Woolworth incorporated, as F.W. Woolworth & Co., and in 1909 he founded F.W. Woolworth and Co., Limited, to serve Great Britain and Ireland. Then in 1911 he invited four rival American retail chains to merge their businesses with his and form a single national corporation. The four rival retailers were Seymour Horace Knox (Woolworth’s first cousin), with 108 five-and-tens; Fred Morgan Kirby, with 84; Charles Sumner Woolworth (Frank’s brother), with 14; and Earle Perry Charlton, with 48. Woolworth’s own giant company at the time of the merger had 319 stores. Agreements were signed on Nov. 12, 1911, and the new consolidated company, with 596 stores coast to coast, assumed the F.W. Woolworth Co. name. The new company’s headquarters, the Woolworth Building (1913) in New York City, was the tallest skyscraper in the world until 1930.

By 1929 Woolworth had about 2,250 outlets, and its stores continued to proliferate in the United States and Britain. The company raised its price ceiling to 20 cents in 1932 and abolished price limits altogether in 1935. The company purchased the shoe manufacturer and retailer G.R. Kinney Corporation (founded 1894) in 1963 and the Australian shoe store chain Williams the Shoemen in 1969. In 1982 it sold a controlling interest in its British subsidiary.

Over the years Woolworth acquired other store chains. The company’s Foot Locker chain of athletic-shoe retailers proved especially successful. By 1982 the company had more than 8,000 stores worldwide, but it was facing increased competition from the Kmart Corporation and other discount retailers. These pressures compelled Woolworth to rely more and more on its Foot Locker, Kinney Shoes, and other specialty stores. Woolworth closed its remaining variety stores in the United States in 1997, thus abandoning its traditional general-merchandise retail business there.

After renaming itself Venator Group, Inc., in 1998, the company operated retail stores in North America, Europe, and Australia into the early 21st century. The company increasingly focused on sporting goods, and in 2001 it changed its name to Foot Locker, Inc.—the name of its leading retail brand—and relaunched the Woolworth brand as an online company, although some Woolworth retail stores remained in operation.

But, having risen like a meteor, all the way to the top, it faded into a peaceful retirement in the USA and Canada in the 1990s, before falling like a stone in the UK in 2008. The British chain went from normal trading in 800 stores to complete shutdown in just 41 days. In Spring 2009 the German F.W. Woolworth GmbH declared itself insolvent. It has since trimmed down and re-emerged as a chain of 150 small department stores with plans to expand. In Great Britain the brand was soon revived on-line.

He passed away just three days after complaining of a head cold as he left his desk in New York. He died from septic poisoning from a tooth infection on 8 April 1919. He was 66 and had been preparing for the fortieth anniversary celebrations for his 1,200 strong chain. His brother, Charles Sumner Woolworth, became Chairman - a post he held with distinction until 1944, while the Company Treasurer, Hubert Parson, stepped up to become President.


At the same time, using his preference to have someone he could trust, Frank brought in their cousin, Seymour H. Knox I, to open a store in Reading, Pennsylvania, under the name "Woolworth and Knox". Seymour had been managing a general store in Michigan.

For many years the company did a strictly "five-and-ten cent" business, but in the spring of 1932 a 20-cent line of merchandise was added. On November 13, 1935 the company's directors decided to discontinue selling price limits altogether.

The stores eventually incorporated lunch counters after the success of the counters in the first store in the UK in Liverpool and served as general gathering places, a precursor to the modern shopping mall food court. A Woolworth’s lunch counter in Greensboro, North Carolina became the setting for the 1960 Greensboro sit-ins during the Civil Rights Movement.

The Woolworth's concept was widely copied, and five-and-ten-cent stores (also known as five-and-dime stores or dimestores) became a 20th-century fixture in American downtowns. They would serve as anchors for suburban shopping plazas and shopping malls in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. Criticisms that five-and-dime stores drove local merchants out of business would repeat themselves in the early 21st century, when big box discount stores became popular. However, many five-and-dime stores were locally owned or franchised, as are many dollar stores today.

Growth And Expensions

In the 1960s, the five-and-dime concept evolved into the larger discount department store format. In 1962, Woolworth's founded a chain of large, single-floor discount stores called Woolco. Some of these stores were branded as Winfields, after the founder's middle name.

1962 was the same year that Woolworth's competitors opened similar retail chains that sold merchandise at a discount: the S.S. Kresge Company opened Kmart, Dayton's opened Target, and Sam Walton opened his first Wal-Mart store.

By Woolworth’s 100th anniversary in 1979, it had become the largest department store chain in the world, according to the Guinness Book of World Records.

The first British Woolworths store, which opened in Church Street, Liverpool on 5 Nov 1909On 5 November 1909 Frank Woolworth opened his first store outside North America. 5¢ & 10¢ became Threepence and Sixpence for the branch in Church Street, Liverpool, England. Woolworth had toyed with the idea of opening in Britain ever since 1890 and took the plunge despite the reservations of his management.

Frank hired his cousin, Fred, to lead the new venture along with three volunteers from New York State. To deal with resistance from the British press he also hired an Englishman, William Lawrence Stephenson, from a favoured supplier. The American parent put up £50,000 capital to finance the new British chain.

The Woolworth Building in Broadway Place, New York, which was the world's tallest building when it opened in 1913. It was affectionately nicknamed the 'Tower of Nickels and Dimes' and stands today as a permanent memorial to the five-and-ten founder who paid in cash for it to be built. Picture with very special thanks to Mr Fred Moore Woolworth III. By 1912 the British subsidiary had already grown to twelve stores. Its momentum was so great that it was able to open stores using retained profit. Frank had already turned his attention to other projects.

Work was nearing completion on his grandest scheme - the world's tallest building in Broadway Place, New York. He had commissioned the top architect Cas Gilbert, and had overseen the work personally, paying for it in cash. As the $13.5 m tower topped out in 1912, it was already in profit. Businessmen had flocked to take floor space in the landmark Woolworth Building that dominated the Manhattan skyline.

Also in 1912, the five friendly rival Five-and-Ten Cent Store chains joined forces. The fascias of S.H. Knox & Co., F.M. Kirby & Co., E.P. Charlton & Co., C. S. Woolworth & Co. and W. H. Moore & Son vanished from the Main Streets of the USA and Canada in the merger. The five men shared a bounty of $65m from the sale of shares. Each became a VP of the F. W. Woolworth Co. Frank engineered the deal and became the President.

By the outbreak of War in Europe, the British chain had opened 44 stores with many more in the pipeline. The infant resisted its parent's offer to send help from the USA as managers went away to war.

In 1917 the American company opened its thousandth store in palatial premises on New York's Fifth Avenue. In the same year the American President, Woodrow Wilson, invited Woolworth to take a Government role to raise funds after the USA joined the World War. The magnate launched a savings stamp scheme just weeks later, persuading rival dimestores to join him in selling them. He later funded victory parades for returning servicemen in many towns served by a Woolworth Five-and-Ten.

 A copycat company opened a chain under the F. W. Woolworth name in Australia in 1924. The store layout was based on its founder's visits to London and the threepenny and sixpenny stores. Today it is the market-leading supermarket down-underIn 1924 a canny group of Australian entrepreneurs led by Mr. H. G. Christmas were looking for a name for their new 'stupendous bargain basement'. They cheekily applied to register the name F. W. Woolworth & Co. Ltd., in an attempt to cash in on the brand's pulling power, even though they were completely unrelated.

In-fighting between the British and American companies meant that neither raised its objection in time, allowing the venture to go ahead. Bitter legal battles in the High Court followed in the 1930s, after rumours spread of Antipodean plans to open an office in London. The Aussies had the last laugh. Unlike the Poms, they had the resolve to complete a move into food retailing in the Sixties. Today they are the nation's market-leading supermarket. A former subsidiary operates independently in New Zealand.



The Woolworth five-and-ten formula was adapted to 25 and 50 pfennigs when the chain opened a subsidiary in Germany in 1927

By the mid 1920s growth in the USA was slowing down. Rival dimestores had adapted to price inflation with fifteen cent lines. But the Woolworth Board was reticent to shake a proven formula, until they saw the early results from a new subsidiary in Weimar Germany in 1927. They had translated the formula to become the 25 und 50 Pfennig stores, roughly 10 and 20 cents, allowing a much broader range. The chain grew so rapidly that it had become self-sustaining before Hitler placed restrictions on foreign companies operating in Germany.



The short-lived 5, 10 and 15 cent store formula from F.W. Woolworth Co., reflected in the fascia of the branch on Market Street in San Francisco, California


Buoyed by the German news, a 15 cent line was added after fiftieth birthday celebrations in North America in 1929. This re-energised the chain after its stock was among the heaviest fallers in the Wall Street Crash. Many investors were all-but wiped out by the collapse. Barbara Hutton's father Edwin had wisely sold her entire holding and put the money into gold just weeks before the crash.

The Company Treasurer, Byron Miller, hatched a scheme with the British MD William Stephenson. They reduced the American golden share and listed the subsidiary on the London Stock Exchange. The move gave the Threepenny and Sixpenny stores a measure of independence. It also funded a special dividend of $1.50 on each 25¢ parent company share. The move helped to save many investors. They rewarded Miller with the Presidency in the USA. Stephenson became Chairman in the UK.



The F. W. Woolworth & Co. Ltd. 3D and 6D Store in Stafford Road, Wallington, which was 600th to open in the United Kingdom. It traded from 1934 until the collapse of the parent company in 20081934 marked two very different milestones in Britain and America. The UK firm was enjoying an unrivalled period of prosperity, opening a store every five days outside the Christmas season. A major celebration marked the opening of the 600th 'Woolies', which was a new-build London suburban store in Wallington, Surrey. Sales and profits had never been better.

Meanwhile Stateside competition was hotting up. The Directors had to give in to the inevitable, facing up to a decision that had been postponed for too long. Rather than match the new 25¢ lines of their rivals, they opted to abandon the upper limit completely. They announced that Woolworth would remain a value store, but freed the Buyers to choose more aspirational products. Charles Sumner Woolworth told his biographer, company man J. K. Winkler, that he had abstained in the vote, unable to say 'yes' in his brother's memory, unwilling to say 'no' as a stockholder and a businessman.



Good Things to Know Magazine carried the news that the British Woolworths had abandonned its sixpenny price limit because of war shortages in 1940. Although the move was intended to be temporary price inflation meant it never came back

The British company went to lengths to maintain its sixpenny limit, asserting its buying power to make suppliers accept lower margins during the price inflation of 1938 and 1939. War forced a rethink as prices rocketed and cheap goods became hard to find. Officially the upper limit was dropped "temporarily".

As Britain and Canada went to war, the USA enjoyed a period of prosperity. New York recalled their American Directors from Britain and Germany, but all refused to leave. To show neutrality the Corporation donated to war relief in both countries, funding an orphanage near London and ambulances for Berlin.

In 1940 British staff raised 202,680 sixpences to buy a Spitfire to help the RAF. The four Directors matched them penny for penny and plane for plane. Lord Beaverbrook sent a thank you letter and a special plaque. He also agreed to the staff's request to name the planes Nix Over Six Primus, and Secundus. They were the first national assets ever to be named by a company.

Also in 1940, Germany invaded the Channel Islands of Jersey and Guernsey. The two stores there traded independently during the occupation.

America joined the war after Pearl Harbour, sending a big troop surge in the run-up to D-Day. Many Britons met their American Woolworth cousins for the first time, providing a 'home from home' for men 3,000 miles from a five-and-ten. A number of Woolies stores provided billets for soldiers waiting for the big day.



Charles Sumner Woolworth, who joined the five and ten when it was just a five in 1880. He served the chain that bore his brother's name for a staggering 67 years, including 35 years as the Chairman of the Board from 1919 until 1944.As the Allies marched into Germany in 1944, Company Chairman Charles Sumner Woolworth announced that he planned to step down because of failing health. He had opened his first Woolworth Bros. store in 1880. From 1885 to 1912 he led his own chain, C. S. Woolworth & Co., before joining forces with four 'friendly rivals' to form F. W. Woolworth Co. in the $65m merger. After his brother's death he had been appointed Chairman. He held the role with great distinction for 35 years. Despite his retirement, he continued to be an active member of the company. On his death in 1947 he had served the chain for a staggering 67 years, and yet today next to no-one has heard of him. By rights, he should be celebrated as one of the great retail pioneers.

On 25 Nov 1944 tragedy struck the British company, as a German V2 rocket destroyed the large store in New Cross, London, causing the worst civilian casualties of any enemy action in the whole conflict. 168 people died.

William Stephenson, a founder member of the British Woolworths, who led the firm to great success as MD from 1923 to 1931 and then Chairman from 1931 to his retirement in 1948In 1945, following the Allied Victory, the English Chairman William Stephenson reflected on the sacrifices of the World War. He paid tribute to the 342 Woolies Managers and 1,963 other staff who had served King and Country in Uniform. In the final reckoning 145 lost their lives. He also praised the dedication of those who had kept the stores trading on the Home Front. 26 stores had been destroyed, 326 badly damaged and two had been occupied by the enemy out of a chain of 767 branches. He paid special tribute to 'Store 362' and to the 168 colleagues and customers who had fallen at its counters so tragically. He noted that the losses at New Cross were higher than across the whole of the rest of the company worldwide, including men under arms.

The German chain had also suffered terribly in the final years of the war, with many branches flattened, along with the parent company's state-of-the-art warehouse facility in Sonneberg. Ironically it had been annihiliated by the Bomber Command of the USAF.

Stephenson said that now the Corporation must rebuild for the future, declaring that he was excited about the opportunities that lay ahead. The 'English Mr Woolworth' had kept working well into his Sixties because of the war, and was keen to retire. He handed over the reins in 1948, but was frequently invited to provide Consultancy in New York and London throughout the Fifities.



A 1950s booklet explaining the role of sales assistants in F. W. Woolworth's new self-service stores in the USABy 1950 every pre-war Buyer and Director had retired both in the United States and in Great Britain. Without the upper price limit it fell to a new generation to redefine the brand and to try to maintain the uniqueness that had taken Woolworth to the top of the market. The approach was very different on either side of the Atlantic.

The Americans faced stiff competition as shopping habits changed. The cash-rich company responded with a massive investment programme, relocating many of the stores to Malls and converting them to self-service. These had new counter layouts and more merchandise, with high-priced items like electrical appliances. Margins were reduced, passing the savings on to the customer. New overseas stores were opened in Havana, Cuba, and evenPalestine.

In Britain it was a different story. Government austerity measures favoured Woolies. Unlike rivals it was able to import goods freely from overseas. Restrictions were based on quantities rather than prices, allowing the firm to buy high-priced items instead of sixpenny ones.

Without serious competition profits raced ahead. The Board became very conservative. It did not embrace self-service and opted to extend stores in-situ rather than relocate. A proportion of profits was retained for a mass-opening programme, which saw 250 new stores during the decade. But, ominously, controls weakened and stock levels spiralled upwards.


A huge Woolworth superstore opened in Harare, Zimbabwe (then known as Salisbury, Southern Rhodesia) in 1959. The store was one of a number of subsidiaries launched in the decade in the colonies by the British companyWith plenty of money in the bank the British company went on a spending spree, upgrading the lighting across its mainland stores, adding small supermarkets in extra space and extending into emerging markets like Do-It-Yourself. It also began opening in the Commonwealth. In 1954 a branch opened in Kingston, Jamaica. Success brought further stores in the former colonies of Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados and the West Indies .

In 1959 it invested the princely sum of £1m to open a huge air-conditioned store in Harare, Zimbabwe (then known as Salisbury, Southern Rhodesia). It did not attempt to adapt the formula, instead exporting British goods and modelling the African layout on the store in the leafy Surrey town of Guildford, back in the UK.

 The British company celebrated its Golden Jubilee in 1959 with record profits. Despite being 52.7% American-owned, it was still the second largest stock on the London Exchange, outmatched only by ICI. Investors were paid a special celebration dividend.

The 1000th branch had opened in Portslade, West Sussex on 22 May 1958. FWW boasted a shop in virtually every parade across the British Isles and the Republic of Ireland. Despite the bright and shiny appearance and the loyal customer following, these had changed very little over the previous fifteen years, save for stocking many more expensive items.

To marking the Jubilee, the dynamic American CEO Robert C. Kirkwood, who had risen from the stockroom to the boardroom, thanked the British for their contribution, but warned of tough times ahead. He urged the Board to adapt and change quickly.

Kirkwood had already given his Store Managers the discretion to abandon the segregation policy. It was agreed that symbolically black members of staff would be served first, and then the protestors. The Greensboro Times  reported 'They came as individuals and they were served as individuals. The sky did not fall.'  The shop has been preserved. It marks a long overdue recognition that all men are born equal.  At last the everyday store really was for everyone.


Looking into the Future

Robert C. Kirkwood - the visionary leader of F. W. Woolworth Co in the late 1950s and 1960s Kirkwood was a visionary leader. He believed passionately that the chain must embrace big changes in order to survive. He reshaped the Company. Some of his actions have helped to sustain the brand into the 21st century, continuing to pay dividends to shareholders. Others later contributed to the disintegration of the Woolworth store chains on both sides of the Atlantic.


The CEO had already moved many Main Street stores into Malls and Shopping Centers. The next step was bolder still. He launched a chain of much larger Woolco stores out-of-town. These offered a one-stop shop with plenty of car parking. The idea was partly inspired by Kresge's K-mart.

The first Woolco stores opened in Columbus, Ohio, USA and Hamilton, Ontario, Canada in 1962. Trading was mediocre, but the CEO held faith, opening 150 outlets by the end the decade. He borrowed money on backloaded mortgages to finance the move, expecting the format to gel long before these fell due for payment in the Eighties.


The shoe shops of G.R. Kinney joined F. W. Woolworth in 1963 and became Kinney Shoe CorporationIn another radical move, he started to diversify, buying businesses that he believed would complement the new Woolco Division. In 1963 the shoe giant G.R. Kinney was acquired. The retailer made its own products, and provided a steady supply of cheap, reliable footwear for Woolworth and Woolco. In 1969 the fashion chain Richman Brothers also joined the stable. Kirkwood hoped that adding new people and management skills would help to shake up Woolworth's narrow, conservative culture.



The first Woolco stores in the USA and UK. Top: Columbus, Ohio, USA and bottom Oadby, Leicester, England .The UK board tried to ignore the CEO's suggestions. They considered Woolco inappropriate for the British market. The UK had lower car ownership and no shops out of town. Instead they extended some in-town stores to Woolco size.

Kirkwood was not satisfied. He insisted that the subsidiary must give Woolco a go. He also pushed through a low-price own label brand, in place of the UK chain's range-by-range branding. Less controversially he encouraged the chain to computerise its supply chain and accounting, using software developed in the USA and already in use at a Central Accounting Office in Chicago, Illinois.


The Winfield own-brand, launched in 1963, used the middle name of the Founder, Frank Winfield Woolworth Planning barriers meant that the first Woolco in Oadby, Leicester did not open until 1967. The own label was branded Winfield, the Founder's middle name, and first hit the shelves in 1964. The Accounting Office and Warehouse was commissioned in Castleton, Rochdale in 1965, and became operational two years later.

A new 'modern' corporate identity was introduced in North America as Woolworth prepared for its ninetieth anniversary in 1969. The red-front was replaced by a new light-blue logotype for new and refurbished stores. The styling was unpopular, and in the end the firm relented, retaining the logo but once again colouring it red.

Over the next twenty years Frank invited relatives and co-workers from Moore's to join him, establishing a syndicate of five 'friendly rivals'. The chains operated independently, but carried his goods. The formula proved popular, allowing each pioneer to expand rapidly. The openings drew large crowds. As his buying power grew, Woolworth started to track products back to the source, offering cash payment to those vendors who were willing to drop their prices and sell direct. Many of the items came from Europe, where manufacturing was more advanced. After 1890 it became Woolworth's home from home.




Thriving And Acquisitions


The Board's competence was brought into sharp focus by a series of disasters during the decade. In 1971 a whole season's stock was lost when the four year old distribution centre burnt to the ground. Its sprinklers were not working. In 1972 the store in Belfast burnt down in the Northern Ireland troubles. It had no contingency plan. In 1973 the large superstore in Colchester also burnt down. Fortunately no-one was hurt, but no remedial action appears to have resulted from these events.

Disaster struck on 8 May 1979 when one of the largest stores, Manchester, burned down. Tragically eight customers and a member of staff died in the incident, which played out live on national television. The coverage showed that fire exits were locked and staff did not appear to have been trained. It took a number of years and a change of owner to recover the damage to the brand's reputation.

One of a number of window banners that were displayed in the windows of American Woolworth stores throughout 1979, in honour of the chain's hundredth anniversary


The parent company celebrated its centenary in 1979. The event was marred by a hostile takeover bid from Canada's Brascan Corporation. It highlighted the steady decline in returns over a twenty year period.

The management denied claims that cash was short, and promised good long-term prospects. The $35 a share bid was rejected by the Board, which narrowly won the day. The debacle revealed that, despite being the largest store chain in the world, Woolworth had become vulnerable. It prompted big changes during the Eighties.


A B&Q DIY Supercentre in the 1980s.In 1980 the British Woolworth made its first acquisition, buying the B&Q Retail chain. Analysts believed the price of the out-of-town DIY stores group was too high, while the Board faced a backlash from Woolworth Managers for funding the purchase by closing and selling two major London stores.

The Board responded with a PR charm offensive. It is believed that the campaign drew attention to the fact that Woolworth UK was undervalued, particularly after the B&Q purchase, and led to a buy-out bid from a group of entrepreneurs.


The front page of London's Financial Times announced the news that the British F. W. Woolworth subsidiary has been sold to a group of British entrepreneurs in 1982.Despite the assurances given in the bid-battle, the US company needed cash. It agreed to sell its golden share of the British company to a local consortium of investors for £310m. The 'management buy-in' saw the firm change hands without the agreement of London stockholders, over the heads of the Board. The sale was completed on 1 Oct 1982.

Weeks later the New York Board announced the closure of every Woolco in the USA. It said this resulted from the recession. The liquidation sale began in January 1983. The move reflected poor results throughout the life of the chain and allowed the real-estate to be sold to pay off the mortgages. The Canadian stores were more profitable and continued to trade.


The successful trading formats developed by the new owners of Woolworths UK in the 1980s.The new British owners initiated their own radical shakeup. The 250 best freehold stores were sold. Most were in London and other major cities. The Woolco stores and every Woolworth store in the Republic of Ireland were closed and sold. The overseas branches in the Commonwealth were sold cheaply to the local management.

After paying off their backers, the new owners used the surplus to develop the B&Q out of town DIY subsidiary very rapidly and to acquire other UK businesses, including the Comet discount electrical chain and the Superdrug drugstore.

A new formula was applied to the surviving 750 High Street stores. The range was trimmed back to six areas where the chain had strong shares - Sweets, Toys and Stationery, Kids Clothes, Entertainment, Home and Garden, and Fashion Accessories.

Branches were given one of two bright new looks, the first for major towns and the second for local High Streets. By 1997 the chain was back in fashion and generating profits of £100m a year, allowing it to expand again,.The consortium had invested wisely. Kingfisher had became a respected international retail brand.



 Woolworth fell into steep decline after the closure of Woolco. As leases fell due stores were generally closed, with refurbishment activity kept to a minimum. In an attempt to revive the chain, 900 stores were closed in 1992 and another 1,000 in 1993. Richman Brothers was closed after the management failed to find a buyer. The goal of the restructuring was to release funds to restore the remaining metropolitan branches, principally in New York State, Pennsylvania and Florida where the chain still had critical mass and could perhaps be saved.


Woolworths parent Kingfisher anounced a mega-merger with Britain's third largest supermarket, Asda, to propel themselves into the global superleague. Sadly it all ended in tears. By 1999 the UK Woolworths parent Kingfisher had a strong reputation. The CEO seemed to have the Midas touch as he had built a huge empire which had pushed the share price ever upwards. Investors overwhelmingly endorsed his proposed 'merger of value champions', in which the group would merge with Asda, the UK's third largest supermarket. Detailed plans were published showing the benefits, particularly to Woolworths and sister company Superdrug, and to Asda. Just as the deal was due to complete Asda withdrew, accepting a better offer from the world's largest retailer, Wal-mart.


The prospectus and demerger documents that launched the new independent Woolworths Group plc in the UK in 2001.The long, drawn-out demerger process saw a series of Boardroom bust-ups. By the time the new Group launched it had a new management team, brought in from outside with little value retail experience. The new CEO Trevor Bish-Jones wooed the City to a plan to move upmarket, and expand the music publishing and distribution division. He decided to focus his attention on improving the largest stores, which were actually the least profitable, while leaving the smaller branches for a later date.

The formula centred on children, with larger displays of Toys and Clothes, music and DVDs replacing some of the traditional home ranges. The offer of sweets and pic'n'mix was trimmed back. Prices remained competitive but on a more up-market range.

The Big Red Book - an extended range catalogue, and a major web presence, were part of the new CEO's formula for updating the British Woolworths. Between 2002 and 2007 weekly customer numbers fell steeply from 7m to 4½m, as loyal shoppers without children were driven away. The problem was compounded by intense competition from the major supermarkets, which diversified into the ranges carried by Woolworths, and undercut the prices.

A series of acquisitions, paid for in cash, made the Group more dependent on music and video products, at a time when that market was in meltdown. Investors were assured that the wholesale division and publishing arms were both "world-class businesses", to balance the recovery story at Woolworths.

Standing Tall

Still with the decline of the signature stores, Woolworth marched on with a new focus toward athletic goods on January 30, 1997, acquiring the mail-order catalogue athletic retailer Eastbay.

 The company had more than 1,000 stores at the time of his death, and with lunch counters in many stores, Woolworth was America's largest restaurant chain through the 1940s. The company peaked as the world's largest department store chain in the late 1970s, with more than 4,000 stores.
On March 17, 1997, Wal-Mart replaced Woolworth's as a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Analysts at the time cited the lower prices of the large discount stores and the expansion of supermarket grocery stores – which had begun to stock merchandise also sold by five-and-dime stores – as contributors to Woolworth's decline in the late 20th century. On July 17, 1997, Woolworth's closed its remaining department stores in the U.S. and changed its corporate name to Venator.

In 1999, Venator moved out of the Woolworth building in New York City to offices on 34th Street. On October 20, 2001, the company changed names again; this time, it took the name of its top retail performer and became Foot Locker, Inc. Foot Locker stores chiefly sell athletic clothing and footwear.


By the late 1990s business was sputtering, and the company closed all of its American department stores, renamed itself Venator, and sold the Woolworth Building. In 2003 Venator renamed itself after the conglomerate's most successful division, Foot Locker, Inc. Under separate ownership, Woolworth stores are still operated in Austria, Germany, Mexico, South Africa, and the United Kingdom.



Woolworth and its lasting influence on popular culture

The original parent company, now known as Footlocker Inc, continues to trade successfully. It is the largest athletic shoe company in the world with more than 3,000 shops across the globe. In the UK there are a handful of locations, like Brixton, South London, where Footlocker operates from the spot that was once home to a Woolworth store. The former parent company, Kingfisher, remains the market leader in Do-It-Yourself retailing in the United Kingdom and France, with many interests around the world.
  
 Woolworth was the pioneer of ‘five-and-dime’ style retailing.
    In 1880, Woolworth first sold manufactured Christmas tree ornaments, which proved extremely popular.
    In 1928, Adelaide Hall introduced the hit song, I Can't Give You Anything But Love, Baby written by Jimmy McHugh and Dorothy Fields, including the lyric ‘Diamond bracelets Woolworth doesn’t sell, baby’.
    In 1929, in Atlantic City, USA, Sam Foster (founder of FosterGrant eyewear) sold sunglasses from his counter in Woolworth’s on the boardwalk in Atlantic City, which became a great hit with the sunbathing public.
    ‘Sixes and Sevens’ – Young Mods: the term came from having T-shirts with numbers on. For a time The Who called themselves ‘The High Numbers’. Young Mods were also called ‘Sixes and Sevens’ because the T-shirts cost 7s/6d from Woolworth’s.
    In 1976, David Bowie memorably called his look, “a cross between Nijinsky and Woolworth’s.”
    There is a song "Warrior in Woolworths" by X-Ray Spex from their 1978 album, Germfree Adolescents.
    In 2012, British electro-pop due Blancmange released the song, ‘By The Bus Stop at Wollies’, on their album Blanc Burn.


Deaths

Fred Moore Woolworth, the founding MD of the British Woolworths and his successor, founder director William Lawrence StephensonIn 1923 the firm was rocked by another death, as Frank's cousin Fred, MD of the British subsidiary, passed away at just fifty-two years of age. He had overseen the opening of 150 highly profitable stores. He had a reputation for being firm but fair, setting high standards but also treating the staff generously, with paid holidays and outings to the seaside.
 A lively and active man, he suffered a stroke on a trip home to the USA and never fully recovered. He succumbed to a second attack six months later. His successor was the Yorkshireman William Stephenson, who (in his own words) "joined on the ground floor" before the first British Woolworth store opened.

Frank W. Woolworth died in April 8, 1919, Glen Cove, New York, United States.