By Louis A. Zona
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – One reason that I see the harm in letting our favorite department stores slowly disappear is that they are the last vestige of the human touch in much of our daily life.
As a kid growing up in a small town, I truly loved the experience of visiting Fisher’s Department Store with Mom. I was always so happy to be welcomed as if the store were in Mayberry and frequented by Aunt Bea and her neighbor Clara.
Back in the day, most retail stores hired super friendly people who managed the stores and even remembered your name and those of family members.
My favorite store employee was an affable fellow named Frankie who distinguished his looks by wearing an oversized bow tie with a white shirt. While he occasionally forgot my first name, he remembered that my dad ran the barber shop on the next block. He remembered me as “Red’s boy,” since dad’s nickname was Red.
Frankie began every conversation with a comment about the Pittsburgh Pirates. “What are we going to do with that team?” he’d ask, then he’d go into a description of the new paint colors in St. Mary’s Church, Frankie’s parish.
I can still see in my memory his white shirt and red bow tie. We’d always end the conversation with “Go Bucs” and always with a friendly smile.
But it was the way that customers were treated in that small town that has stayed with me. The customer always came first and an effort was always made to personalize a purchase or even just look over the merchandise.
I know that today’s stores are not even close to the experience that our grandparents knew. I caught a little of that experience when I was a small kid shopping downtown with my mom. I have seen kind manners and respect at some department stores when the clerk bags a purchase and then steps in front of the counter to complete the sale. It’s a small gesture but one that I’m sure that Frankie would approve of were he was still with us.
I would guess that the next topic should include discussions of the changes that have taken place in the world of retail – specifically the financial health of existing department stores. And this is the subject that makes me quite emotional since the department stores that we older people remember are for the most part nonexistent.
Those that remain should be supported. If we don’t support these once-vibrant retail centers, they are destined to go the way of the dinosaur.
We all know what the problem is. But millions of us contribute to their possible demise every time we choose to buy that pair of sneakers through the internet instead of trying them on in a retail store to get a perfect fit.
Most of us blame the Covid pandemic for the popularity of having our purchases delivered to our door. I avoid using the mail or delivery services as often as I can in favor of going to a large store where I can try on garments, touch, and feel the quality of goods and otherwise support the tried-and-true retail store.
I have often supported efforts on the part of small shops to band together to promote sales of merchandise. America has long encouraged the ownership and retail element of small stores and shops. They provide a wonderful role and have earned our support.
For those who have never visited the small town of Beaver, Pa., it has an appearance that is right out of a Norman Rockwell magazine cover. It is an active town made up of dozens of small shops, restaurants and bakeries. Beaver also has a lot of housing, apartments, a beautiful park and holiday parades. It presents a beautiful model of what America once was and could still become with a little planning.
I contrast Beaver with my hometown of New Castle, Pa., which as a town has made one unwise decision after another.
Back in the 1970s, a decision was made by the redevelopment authority to get rid of all or most of the residential area on the city’s south side. Once the local businesses and residences were torn down, a short highway was created to move cars away from the city.
Imagine moving cars out of the populated area of the city and forcing traffic to go around the city. A dumber move could not have been accomplished.
And as I think about my dear old town, I see so few things to brag about, with the exception of the Hoyt Institute and the Lawrence County Historical Society.
It’s a case of the arts coming to the rescue but too little, too late.
So, now you can drive by what little retail exists in New Castle on your way to Beaver, where you’ll be in for a treat.