Story
A.I. Namm & Son Department Store
A department store founded with the motto "Don't Sell America Short... Sell It Shirts!"
A.I. Namm and Son Department Store
Adolph I. Namm was a Polish immigrant with an embroidery and upholstery business in Manhattan. In 1885, he moved his business in Brooklyn, and by 1891 he opened a new store at 452 Fulton.
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A.I. Namm and Son Department Store
At the time, that stretch of Fulton Street was emerging as a popular commercial shopping destination and when his son, Benjamin Harrison Namm, eventually took over the business, he was able to capitalize on it.
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A.I. Namm and Son Department Store
During its heyday, the store was enormously successful. It was also one of the largest cash-only enterprises in Brooklyn, competing with other large department stores like Abraham & Straus.
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A.I. Namm and Son Department Store
It would expand to over eighty departments and more than 1,200 employees.
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A.I. Namm and Son Department Store
The A.I. Namm & Son flagship store was closed in 1957, and the business moved to the suburbs.
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A.I. Namm and Son Department Store
The building has since been sold and purchased several times. The store once covered an entire city block, but the 450-458 is the last remaining portion today.
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