Goldsmith's
| File:Goldsmith's logo.svg Classic Goldsmith's logo | |
| Company type | Department store chain |
|---|---|
| Industry | Retail |
| Founded | 1 January 1870 in Memphis, Tennessee, United States |
| Founder | Jacob Goldsmith, Isaac Goldsmith |
| Defunct | 2005 |
| Fate | Brand discontinued and replaced by Macy's |
| Headquarters | Memphis , United States |
Area served | Memphis metropolitan area and surrounding regions |
| Products | Clothing, footwear, bedding, furniture, jewelry, beauty products, housewares |
| Parent | Federated Department Stores (from 1959) |
Goldsmith's was a department store established in 1870 in Memphis, Tennessee by German immigrant siblings Jacob and Isaac Goldsmith. The store expanded into a regional chain primarily serving the Memphis area until 2005, when its brand was discontinued and replaced by Macy's. Following this transition, Goldsmith's locations were integrated into Federated's Macy's Central division, which was later reorganized as Macy's South and currently operates under a restructured Macy's Central division.
The origins of Goldsmith's trace back to 1870, when the brothers invested $500 (approximately $Template:Format price in Template:Inflation/year) to open a dry goods store at 163 Beale Street. In 1895, they moved to a more spacious site at 125 Main Street, which remained their primary location for much of the twentieth century. A significant renovation occurred in 1952, expanding the downtown store into the adjacent former Gayoso Hotel and updating its exterior. This flagship downtown location ceased operations in 1993.
During the 1960s, Goldsmith's began establishing suburban outlets, starting with a three-story store at Oak Court Mall (Poplar and Perkins) in 1961. The early 1970s saw an expansion with a three-level addition west of the original building: two upper floors dedicated to parking and a ground level connected to the existing retail space. Further growth occurred in the late 1970s with a northern extension featuring two floors of above-ground retail. When Oak Court Mall opened in 1988, it was linked directly to the standalone Goldsmith's store. Concurrently, a two-story retail addition was added north of the original structure, eventually housing the furniture gallery. This expansion brought the total retail area to nearly 400,000 sq ft (37,000 m2), ranking it among Macy's largest locations nationwide.
Goldsmith's continued its growth with the launch of a 130,000 sq ft (12,000 m2) store at Southland Mall on August 23, 1966. The fourth location opened in August 1971 at Raleigh Springs Mall in northern Memphis. By 1978, Goldsmith’s retail footprint covered 800,000 sq ft (74,000 m2), complemented by 200,000 sq ft (19,000 m2) of warehouse space within Memphis.
In 1981, the company inaugurated its fifth outlet at Hickory Ridge Mall in southeast Memphis. The first Goldsmith’s branch beyond Memphis city limits was established at Old Hickory Mall in Jackson, Tennessee, approximately 85 miles away. The final new store launched by Goldsmith’s was located at Wolfchase Galleria in 1997.
Federated Department Stores acquired Goldsmith’s in 1959. In 1988, Goldsmith’s became part of an Atlanta-based division led by Rich’s department stores. This division expanded further in 1995 by incorporating Cincinnati’s Lazarus chain. In 2003, all stores within this division were co-branded under Macy’s. At that time, five Goldsmith’s locations remained operational under their original name before transitioning fully to Macy’s branding.
Macy’s current volunteer initiative, Partners in Time, originated in 1989 through efforts at both Goldsmith’s and Rich’s as a community engagement program.
Among Goldsmith’s well-known marketing taglines were "Memphis' Greatest Store," prominently displayed on the Oak Court Mall location prior to rebranding. Other frequently used slogans included "All about the South," "A Mid-South tradition since 1870," and later "Time After Time."
Logo
The iconic cursive logo was created by Margaret Grace, who worked in advertising for Goldsmith's, in October 1946. In the mid-1990s, a refreshed logo was introduced, showcasing a sans-serif font accompanied by the new tagline, "Time After Time." Although existing stores retained the original logo, the updated design was implemented at the newly built Wolfchase location. However, following public dissatisfaction over the absence of the traditional logo at this store, the sans-serif version was removed within weeks and replaced by the classic cursive design, which then continued to be displayed on all stores until the transition to Macy's branding. While this modern logo did not appear on store exteriors, it was prominently featured in television and radio commercials. For a brief period in 2005, advertisements displayed a combined "Goldsmith's-Macy's" emblem.
Current state of Goldsmith's stores
Prior to their rebranding as Macy's, two Goldsmith's outlets—Downtown and Raleigh Springs—were closed. The Downtown store has since been repurposed as the Belz Museum of Asian and Judaic Art along with the Center for Southern Folklore. The Raleigh Springs location ceased operations in 2003 and was subsequently demolished along with the associated mall. Among the five remaining locations, both Hickory Ridge and Southland were shuttered following the conversion to Macy's.
The Hickory Ridge store effectively ceased operations on February 5, 2008, after sustaining direct damage from a tornado during the Super Tuesday tornado outbreak. Macy's opted against repairing the facility and permanently closed it. The site briefly housed an Incredible Pizza Cafe before that business also closed in 2012. As of August 2016, this building remains unoccupied.
Macy’s at Southland Mall shut down in 2015 as part of a broader restructuring effort affecting multiple Macy’s locations.
The Jackson, Tennessee store closed its doors in 2021.
By 2021, only two stores—Oak Court and Wolfchase Galleria—continued operating under the Macy’s name.
On January 9, 2025, it was announced that Macy’s at Oak Court Mall (located at Poplar Avenue and Perkins) would close within the first quarter of 2025, leaving Wolfchase Galleria as the sole Macy’s store remaining in Memphis.
See also
- List of department stores converted to Macy's
- List of defunct department stores of the United States
References
External links
- Articles with short description
- Pages with broken file links
- Articles with hatnote templates targeting a nonexistent page
- Webarchive template wayback links
- Defunct department stores based in Tennessee
- Macy's
- History of Memphis, Tennessee
- Retail companies established in 1870
- Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1990
- Retail companies disestablished in 2005
- 1870 establishments in Tennessee
- 2005 disestablishments in Tennessee