Department Stores

Magic Mart Corporate Office

Magic Mart was founded by the Ammar family in West Virginia in 1920. Originally named Ammar Brother’s Department Stores, the company opened its first Magic Mart location in 1967. Ammar’s Inc. owns several department stores in Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, and North Carolina.

The company has 1,000 full time employees and had annual revenue in 2015 of $72 million. Magic Mart sells a wide variety of items from clothing to carpentry items, tuxedo rentals to paint, automotive products to sporting goods. As Magic Mart became more successful, the Ammar Brother’s stores either closed or were converted into Magic Marts.

Magic Mart currently has 22 locations in 4 states and is headquartered in Bluefield, Virginia.

Magic Mart

Magic Mart currently has 22 locations in 4 states and is headquartered in Bluefield, Virginia.

History

Benny’s Corporate Office

Benny’s was founded in 1924 in Providence, Rhode Island, by Benjamin Bromberg. The company operates a chain of department stores in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Connecticut. Benny’s offers a wide range of items in many departments, including lawn and garden, fishing, pet supplies, candy, seasonal, tires, bikes, sporting goods, automotive, food, electronics, hardware, housewares, and toys. The company also provides hands on services such as tires, paint and stain mixing, as well as providing fishing and hunting licenses.

Unlike other retailers, Benny’s does not do online sales, although the company does have a website showing departments and sale items, as well as a list of locations. Current CEO Malcom Bromberg states that while the company won’t rule out internet sales, at this time, they have no immediate plans to open up their company to online purchases.

Benny's

History

Von Maur Corporate Office

Von Maur was founded in 1872 by J.H.C. Petersen and his three sons in Davenport, Iowa. Petersen’s son, William, sold the store in 1916 to R. Harned and the Von Maur brothers. The Von Maur’s assumed complete ownership of the company after Harned passed away in 1937.

Today, the company has 30 locations and offers upscale clothing, footwear, ladies handbags, jewelry, and accessories. Von Maur is known for offering an interest free credit card, free shipping, free shipping for online returns, and free gift wrapping. Most Von Maur stores feature a live pianist playing music during business hours.

Von Maur is continuing to open new stores at a time when many locations are cutting back. The company announced that they would take over the former Nordstrom location in the Mall of Georgia, as well as open a second store in the Minneapolis-St.Paul area in the fall of 2016.

Von Maur

History

Bergdorf Goodman Corporate Office

Bergdorf Goodman was founded in 1899 when a French tailor, Herman Bergdorf, opened a shop in Manhattan, New York. Bergdorf’s apprentice, Edwin Goodman, earned enough money to buy an interest in the business. The company renamed itself Bergdorf Goodman in 1901. The company moved to its present address on 5th Avenue and 58th Street in 1928.

Today, Bergdorf Goodman is one of the most prestigious and popular high end clothing and accessory store in America. The company has two stores, directly across the street from one another. The original store offers women’s designer clothing, jewelry, shoes,and childrens clothing. The newer store, located on the east side of 5th Avenue, features men’s clothing, shoes, and accessories.

Bergdorf Goodman is now a subsidairy of Neiman Marcus, which is owned by the private equity firms Warburg Pincus and TPG Capital. The Neiman Marcus Group had $5.1 billion in revenue in 2015.

Bergdorf Goodman

Bergdorf Goodman is now a subsidairy of Neiman Marcus, which is owned by the private equity firms Warburg Pincus and TPG Capital. The Neiman Marcus Group had $5.1 billion in revenue in 2015.

History

Bi-Mart Corporate Office

Bi-Mart was founded in Yakima, Washington, in 1955. The company is an employee owned chain of department stores across the north west U.S. Bi-Mart has changed hands several times over the years with Pay ‘N Save buying the company in 1976, Thrifty Corporation in 1984, PayLess Drugs in 1990, and Rite Aid in 1996. Endeavour Capital purchased the company in 1997 and sold it to employees in 2004 for $94 million.

Bi-Mart stores are quite diversified in their product line. A typical store offers a pharmacy, power tools, sporting goods, canned and packaged foods, clothing, shoes, housewares, small appliances, and personal care products.

Today, the company has 75 locations in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. Like Costco and Sams, Bi-Mart is a membership store, however, unlike the former, Bi-Mart membership fees are a mere $5 per family and there are no annual renewal fees.

Bi-Mart