department store

department store
department store 1878; A store that sells a variety of items, organized by DEPARTMENT (Cf. department).
The "Department Store" is the outgrowth of the cheap counter business originated by Butler Brothers in Boston about ten years ago. The little "Five Cent Counter" then became a cornerstone from which the largest of all the world's branches of merchandising was to be reared. It was the "Cheap Counter" which proved to the progressive merchant his ability to sell all lines of wares under one roof. It was the Five Cent Counter "epidemic" of '77 and '78 which rushed like a mighty whirlwind from the Atlantic to the Pacific and all along its path transformed old time one line storekeepers into the wide-awake merchant princes of the present day. It was this same epidemic which made possible the world famed Department Stores of Houghton, of Boston; Macy, of New York; Wanamaker, of Philadelphia; and Lehman, of Chicago. ["American Storekeeper," 1885]

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

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  • department store — ➔ store1 * * * department store UK US noun [C] COMMERCE ► a large store that sells many kinds of products in different parts of the building: »She took a job as a sales assistant in the lingerie section of a department store. → See Note STORE(Cf …   Financial and business terms

  • department store — [n] retail store anchor store, chain store, dime store, discount store, five and dime store, outlet store, shop, store; concepts 325,439,448,449 …   New thesaurus

  • Department store — De*part ment store A store keeping a great variety of goods which are arranged in several departments. [Webster 1913 Suppl. +PJC] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • department store — ☆ department store n. a large retail store for the sale of many kinds of goods arranged in departments …   English World dictionary

  • department store — department stores N COUNT A department store is a large shop which sells many different kinds of goods …   English dictionary

  • department store — index market (business) Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • department store — ► NOUN ▪ a large shop stocking many types of goods in different departments …   English terms dictionary

  • Department store — A department store is a retail establishment which satisfies a wide range of the consumer s personal and residential durable goods product needs; and at the same time offering the consumer a choice of multiple merchandise lines, at variable price …   Wikipedia

  • Department store —    A large retail company that plans, buys, merchandises, and displays merchandise in groups/departments either by target market or by product category such as in a swimwear department, a coat department, a designer collection department, and a… …   Historical Dictionary of the Fashion Industry

  • department store — a large retail store carrying a wide variety of merchandise and organized into various departments for sales and administrative purposes. [1885 90, Amer.] * * * Retail establishment that sells a wide variety of goods. These usually include ready… …   Universalium

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