The Ames Fan Club

Defunct Retail => Defunct Department Stores => Topic started by: DefunctStoreKing on August 30, 2008, 05:50:06 PM

Title: Gimbels
Post by: DefunctStoreKing on August 30, 2008, 05:50:06 PM
does anyone remember a defunct store chain called Gimbels, what things did Gimbels have?
Title: Gimbels
Post by: Crawford on August 30, 2008, 06:30:35 PM
I believe Gimbels was a Macy's type store. I don't recall ever going to one and remember hearing the name on an episode of I Love Lucy where Ethel had bought a dress that was identical to Lucy's who got hers in Bloomingdales
Title: Gimbels
Post by: ameskmart1 on August 30, 2008, 08:20:53 PM
This link has a pretty good history of Gimbels
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gimbels)
Title: Gimbels
Post by: Mobil on September 27, 2008, 09:28:04 PM
Gimbels went out of business in 1986. Many of their stores became a store called Stern's. Stern's however closed in 1988. There is a former Gimbels/Stern's, now Boscov's, at Granite Run Mall in Middletown (Media), PA, which opened in 1974. Gimbels was revived for the 2003 movie Elf. :insane:
Title: Gimbels
Post by: FearlessSwan on September 28, 2008, 01:57:16 AM
There was a Gimbel's in the Ridgeway Shopping Center in Stamford, CT. It switched to some other store (can't remember the name) after the chain went under and then became a Marshall's, which is still there to this day, but in a slightly different location since the entire center was remodeled in the late 90s.
Title: Gimbels
Post by: MikeRa on October 07, 2008, 09:07:58 PM
When Gimbel Brothers closed in 1986, the stores were sold to different companies, depending on where the Gimbel Brothers store was located.  Most of the Philadelphia-New York City division went to Stern's, the Milwaukee division went to Marshall Field.  Parts of the Pittsburgh division went to Kaufmann's.:bouncing:

Now, Stern's, Marshall Field & Kaufmann's have all been absorbed into Macy's.:huh:
Title: Gimbels
Post by: TheFugitive on December 26, 2008, 04:27:43 PM
when I was growing up in Pittsburgh, we had three major department store chains: Kaufmann's, Horne's and Gimbels.
All had classic old multi-floor locations downtown.  Gimbels closed up shop shortly after Christmas, 1985.  Hornes was sold to Federated about a decade later and became Lazarus.  Then a few years ago they also acquired Kaufmann's, and re-branded everything as Macy's.  This obviously had a major impact on any local malls which had both a Kaufmann's and Lazarus location.  They continue to operate the former Downtown Kaufmann's location as Macy's.
Title: Gimbels
Post by: Marc82 on February 01, 2009, 06:24:20 PM
At Walmart we sell Gimbels brand Jelly Beans. Any connection to the old Gimbels dept store?