Hess's Department Store

Book excerpt: Hess's Department Store was a unique department store that with a combination of style and showmanship became a shopping legend for almost 100 years. Hess's was founded in 1897 in Allentown by brothers Max and Charles Hess. From its start as a dry goods store, it became the downtown heart of Pennsylvania's third-largest city for much of the 20th century. Its reputation was further enhanced by Max Hess's son, a showman for merchandising. Through a series of photographs, many from private collections and seldom seen, Hess's Department Store brings the glory days of Hess's to life again.