Merchant Princes: An Intimate History of Jewish Families Who Built Great Department Stores

by Leon A. Harris

A compelling history of America's famous Jewish shopkeeping families shows how the Filenes, Gimbels, Marcuses, and others created renowned retail empires out of small pushcart beginnings, powerfully evoking the social changes that were transforming America early in the century. Reprint.

Genres: History, Biography, Nonfiction, Business, Jewish

432 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1980

Reviews

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

An engaging story of the men and families who built merchant empires and Jewish life in the United States. But these stories are brought to the next level by the author's observations on culture, history and people. Written in 1979 when family-owned department stores had given way to national corporations he was a keen observor of the previous century. I wish he could have written a 2019 sequel.

[Kate]

Recommended by Malcolm Gladwell

[Rick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lent to me by a friend, has sat on my shelf a while I think. Full disclosure- I only read the Philadelphia/ Gimbels chapter. I didn’t care about the names, drama, and history while growing up there in the’60s-80s, but it was interesting to me now. Entertainingly written by a department store scion, with many the zinger, but lapses into rank gossip at times.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hardcover - Purchased at Bambergers $9.70
This has been on my shelf a looooonng time and still not read.
FINALLY getting to this....time to move this OFF the shelf!

[Beth]

great research - Reading it for my Sophie Gimbel exhibition