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Sebastian Spering Kresge (July 31, 1867 – October 18, 1966) was an American businessman. He created and owned two chains of department stores, the S. S. Kresge Company, one of the 20th century's largest discount retail organizations, and the Kresge-Newark traditional department store chain.
S.S. Kresge Company. Before discount stores, there were variety “dime stores,” called so because products sold for either a dime or a nickel. Kresge, founded in 1899, was a Detroit-born dime store where shoppers could find daily needs such as housewares, linens, clothing, school supplies, and toys.
Mar 19, 2024 · S.S. Kresge was an American merchant who established a chain of nearly 1,000 variety and discount stores throughout the United States. Kresge worked as a traveling salesman before going into business with one of his customers, John G. McCrory, the owner of several department and five-and-ten-cent.
S. S. Kresge, the founder of the company that would become Kmart, met variety-store pioneer Frank Winfield Woolworth while working as a traveling salesman and selling to all 19 of Woolworth's stores at the time. In 1897, Kresge invested $6,700 saved from his job into a five-and-dime store in Memphis, Tennessee.
Expanding Equity and. Opportunity in America’s Cities. 3215 W. Big Beaver Road Troy, MI 48084 +1 248-643-9630. Contact Us. Founded by retailer Sebastian S. Kresge in 1924, The Kresge Foundation continues to fulfill his mandate: To promote human progress.
Retail chain founder Sebastian Spering Kresge was born in Bald Mount, Pennsylvania on July 31, 1867. His parents, Sebastian Sr. and Catherine Kunkle Kresge were Pennsylvania Dutch farmers. Kresge’s schooling included a four-month commercial course at Eastman’s Business College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., paid for by money he earned bee keeping.
The S.S. Kresge Co. grew to be the second-largest variety chain in the U.S. The stores changed as retail trends matured over the years. The company battled anti-chain store sentiment in the 1920s and 30s.
