Lord and Taylor at Bala Cynwyd, 1955-2020
An estimated 35,000 men, women and children converged at City Line and Belmont Ave., Bala Cynwyd, between 7 and 10 o’clock last night for a public preview of Delaware Valley’s newest department store, a branch of New York’s Lord and Taylor.
Philadelphia Inquirer, February 22, 1955.
Today there are Going Out of Business Signs in the windows of that same Lord and Taylor Store.
Basket of flowers is admired by Miss Dorothy Shaver, company president, and H. Norton Dunn, store manager.
Dorothy Shaver became president of Lord and Taylor in 1945. She was the first woman in the U.S. to lead a large corporation.
Press Release from Hilco Global, August 3, 2020 (A joint venture of Hilco and Gordon Brothers has been retained by LeTote, Inc., parent company of Lord and Taylor, to oversee the store closing process)
NEW YORK, Aug. 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — On August 2, 2020, Le Tote, Inc. and certain of its subsidiaries including Lord & Taylor LLC (together, the “Company”) filed for Chapter 11 reorganization in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. The Company will simultaneously solicit bids for a going concern sale of both its Le Tote and Lord + Taylor businesses, and conduct targeted store closing sales to maximize the value of its business.
The Company filed to facilitate and continue a marketing process for both of its business units that began this summer and to efficiently monetize any assets not sold as part of the marketing process. Both Le Tote and Lord + Taylor will continue to operate during the chapter 11 process and offer the same superior service and value.
To help fund and protect its operations during the chapter 11 process, the Company has obtained consent to use cash collateral from its prepetition secured lenders. The Company has also filed a number of customary motions seeking court authorization to support its operations during chapter 11, including the continued payment of employee wages and benefits and the authority to conduct store closing sales led by a joint venture of Hilco Merchant Resources and Gordon Brothers.
Help wanted ad, L&T style – Philadelphia Inquirer, February 1955
Children’s Shoe Department, Lord and Taylor, 1955. From a collection contributed by Raymond Loewy Associates. The Bala Cynwyd store was among several that Loewy designed for Lord and Taylor.
So sad that this store is closing.
I vividly remember the first day that my mother and I drove to Lord and Taylor in 1955. I was 8 years old and we sat in the car on the City Line Bridge for hours.
waiting to even get close to the parking lot! My mother enjoyed that store immensely. it was very special. with a unique inventory. Sometimes we would visit the store and treat it like a museum! I can The “Bird Cage”: was fun and full of light.. Sorry to learn that it is closing!
I was told that for the initial 30 years it was at a market rate, and allowed the developer’s mortgage to be secured and paid. In return, the next 30 years lease was a reduced rate., like $1.00 per foot. That may explain why the store remained open for such a long time.
What comes next at that location? Not Target, since it is so close to Monument Avenue. Walgreens? CVS?
I loved that store. It had everything I ever wanted or needed. Back in ‘55 it was very
Special. Loved to stroll through the “Penthouse”. Very sorry to learn it is closing.
They had such clever ideas how to decorate
a room and the charming tea room was so cute. I think it was called the “Bird cage”.