Bacon's

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Bacon's

File:Bacons Department Store Final Logo.png
File:J. Bacon & Sons Big Department Store c. 1916.png Store at Fourth and Market, circa 1916
Formerly	J. Bacon & Sons
Company type	Department store
Industry	Retail
Founded	1845 (1845) in Louisville, Kentucky
Founder	Jeremiah Bacon
Defunct	Template:End date and age
Fate	acquired by Dillards
Headquarters	Louisville, Kentucky, U.S.
Number of locations	5 (1998)
Area served	Louisville, Kentucky, Southern Indiana, Owensboro, Kentucky
Parent	Mercantile Stores

Bacon's was a prominent chain of department stores headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, United States.

History

The origins of Bacon's trace back to 1845 when Jeremiah Bacon launched Bacon's Dry Goods on Market Street near Hancock Street. By 1876, the business relocated to a building four times its initial size. In 1901, the company inaugurated its flagship store at the intersection of Fourth and Market streets. This approximately 115,000-square-foot (10,700 m²) facility featured entrances on both streets and was distinguished by an iconic spiraling atrium. This location operated until September 6, 1972, when it was closed to allow construction of the Kentucky International Convention Center.

In 1903, ownership transferred from Jeremiah Bacon’s sons to H.B. Claflin & Company, a major dry goods conglomerate based in New York City that also owned Stewart Dry Goods. Following Claflin’s bankruptcy in 1914, Ohio-based Mercantile Stores acquired Bacon's. The retailer expanded into suburban markets with the opening of a St. Matthews location in 1953; additional outlets followed in Shively in 1956, and at Bashford Manor Mall in 1972. The chain further extended its footprint with a new store in Owensboro in 1977.

Bacon's reestablished a presence downtown in 1982 by opening a store within the Louisville Galleria (later known as Fourth Street Live!), which remained operational until its closure in 2003. A further expansion occurred in 1988 with a new outlet at Mall St. Matthews.

Promoting itself as Kentucky’s longest-standing department store, Bacon's frequently organized elaborate anniversary events and sales promotions. Its "Midnight Madness" sales attracted significant customer interest. During the 1990s, the company encountered growing rivalry from national retailers such as Dillard's, which often positioned stores within the same shopping centers as Bacon's.

Local competitors based in Louisville included chains like Stewart Dry Goods, Ben Snyders, and Kaufman-Straus.

File:Dillard's-Bacon's Merger Logo.png

Dillard's-Bacon's Transition Logo

In 1998, Mercantile Stores was purchased by Dillard's, resulting in the retirement of the Bacon's brand.

Southern Indiana

Before launching its St. Matthews location in 1953, Bacon's already maintained a foothold in Indiana. One of its initial outlets was situated on Spring Street in downtown Jeffersonville. By the mid-1950s, the original Spring Street store was considered inadequate in size and was subsequently replaced in 1956 by a significantly larger establishment within the newly developed Youngstown shopping center. This Youngstown location expanded to nearly five times the square footage of the previous downtown Jeffersonville store. In 1990, the Youngstown Shopping Center branch relocated to River Falls Mall.