Peoples (store)
| File:Peoples Department Store Final Logo.png | |
| Company type | Department store |
|---|---|
| Industry | Retail |
| Founded | 1888 Tacoma, Washington |
| Defunct | 1984 |
| Headquarters | Tacoma, Washington |
| Products | Clothing, footwear, bedding, furniture, jewelry, beauty products, and housewares. |
Peoples, initially established as The Peoples Store Co., was a now-defunct department store chain that operated throughout the southern and western regions of the Puget Sound area in Washington. The company was founded in downtown Tacoma in 1888, and by 1894 it had launched its first branch location in Olympia. In January 1896, Peoples unveiled its flagship store at the intersection of Pacific Avenue and 11th Street in Tacoma—then the city's central business district. Boasting five floors and fifty departments, this establishment was promoted as the largest and most distinguished department store in the Pacific Northwest during that period. This flagship location underwent a southern expansion in 1957.
During the early 1940s, Peoples broadened its reach by operating a series of appliance outlets under the name Electric City across various Puget Sound communities. Over time, many of these stores incorporated clothing lines and were rebranded to carry the Peoples name. By 1948, the chain comprised twelve stores. By 1968, these twelve smaller locations had been consolidated into seven larger regional stores that served as anchor tenants for several shopping malls as well as standalone retail sites situated in downtown districts.
Following a prolonged period of decreasing profitability, Peoples was ultimately closed by its parent company, Mercantile Stores, in early 1984. The original flagship store in Tacoma was subsequently renovated and renamed Puget Sound Plaza; it currently accommodates office spaces along with a branch of Key Bank.
References
Further reading
- Polk City Directories 1964-1983
- "Tacoma Store Has Branch In Chehalis." The Chehalis Bee-Nugget LIV(1937): 3.
External links
- Information on the Peoples Store building from the Pierce County Building Inventory
- The Peoples Store located in Yakima
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- Pages with script errors
- Pages with broken file links
- Defunct department stores based in Washington State
- Retail companies established in 1888
- Defunct companies based in Tacoma, Washington
- Retail companies disestablished in 1983
- 1888 establishments in Washington Territory
- 1983 disestablishments in Washington (state)