it's hard to believe but it's been 20 years
sense the staggers department stores close their doors
and this seems like a good time for us to remember
they're one of the gone but certainly not forgotton
institutions have western Massachusetts here with us Alan stagger
treasured staggers department stores john donovan who among other
duties was general manager I'm sager's downtown Springfield flagship store
now professor business and for your community college and Cheryl Dutton who
works here WG by:
but once upon a time in early life work at Sagar Springfield Plaza store in a
in Hurley days show we say thank you all for being with us
mister starr let me ask you the grandson the store founder Albert Sagar
and I'm sure we could feel hours and hours a conversation briefly
his was really a great story well it really was
can he was born 1860 and robbers were Germany
and is fair in the mill business but they had their mail in switerland
because switerland is known for good lace and there was such a demand for silk
in america that's what brought them here
around the 18
68 and the first always holyoke am i right
yeah well now I really wish Porchester New York I'll
I don't know how we got down there but he did and open it or
by Nene got into the store visions beaker
his father and his uncle and motion the family
had a waitin for Wenger
epidemic and they passed and show he went to work at
thr 13 and a took the inventory from the mill they had congee
in London L and pedal that and name cara job
with mister yet in Westfield that was his first or experience
there sir all right very John Donnelly you were saying just a minute ago are
you spent 12 years with the stagger stores
you said it was a wonderful place to work it really was it was a wonderful
working atmosphere it was professional
it was slate back arm and
having worked with many other places after steiger is a
never realize what a wonderful place it was to work 1 pick up more on that in a
minute but
sure that let me let me ask you you told me you learn things working at staggers
as a kid really a teenager that have stayed with you and help you throughout
all the ensuing years did I did there was some
there was an expectation on the part of the state others
family and expectation on how would you
how you would present yourself how you address how you would speak
I'm and n you and that was carried on throughout
I mean even customers spoke to you
in that same respectful place and fashion
and I just learned very early on to respect and listen to people
and present myself in the best light possible
Alan stagger it was your family's place really quite literally
it bore the family name I'm told you all call the you just referred to as
the store there was a lot of pride taking in the way
things were done and business was conducted its Tigers rather
through an absolute gem national sher o shayri and expectations and people on
and conduct and so forth and so on actually
and I think girl want things to their manager
a dollars an open door policy
and we wanted people to be treated well and that was it
i take 2 secret have our businesses that
we treat people well and they in turn tree the customer well
so on and so forth but no certainly trying to develop that
culture I know when I talk to professor Donnellan
before coming in we talked about an email section there was it seemed to me
just as a customer in some who moved to this area
not all that long before staggers chain
close there was what I thought it was the stagger way
and whether it was working with your employees talking to customers
that there was just this tremendous give-and-take cooperation
try to get people what it was they needed or wanted to
well we def definitely had a a culture
you know have as allen mentioned taking care of customers
and I'm just as their generations have staggers there are certain generations
steiger customers I'm number of people in Springfield
to greatest thinkers who come for instance to register for the China
by the wedding gowns would tell a self-care
mother grandmother who it does the same thing
you know forty-year fifty or sixty years before
on so we we we had a a customer base that
up was very loyal and you know on
and we said did was a nice place to work but also
nice place to shop he and arm we
considered ourselves just a little bit better then
than our competitors sire art buyers were the
the arbiters of taste right if you somebody but something it's Tigers 7
that men fashion that and quality and that reputation
prevailed for an awfully long time children we ask you
before you work it staggers EU Tomei a big treat was on a weekend
to go with your grandmother you Nana and go to visit staggers
man every Saturday and and I we talking with Alan
that's one way you dressed up to go shopping you know mine and I would put
on our gloves and her Hatton
we would catch the bus and go downtown and then the biggest street was a course
having lunch
up in the Tea Room at in our gallery which was
nice and very often they have a fashion show in
much all the beautiful ladies parade around in their outfits loved it
great memories I one sec let me ask you about that the
Tea Room now if there was a place everybody when we they talk about steiger's
from it and they say
and all the Tea Room what what a place that way
I am well about hearing and
had very good food we had a marvelous chef
on and John what was mister french's
and he really built quite a reputation
and you know on Saturday we have over 1000
people eat there and and for the region that
the food was so good and very reasonably priced
that was part of the appeal to I think Jaya
great way to bring in the customers freedom
used to turn the tables and the Tea Room three times at lunch
now try and 11 a 12 and 1 o'clock sitting
and on and you know we used to joke about the fact that
that the chefs de France is through nothing away now
it either went into to the Friday sue or
you know in some mysterious way became something else chickens
catching go get say with a real mystery I can tell
I to hadn't I
but he was truly remarkable I mean most department stores rather restaurants to
draw in customers and their am at a loss but
me we always make money at the Chino shipment
English chief he used to watch the plates going out of the kitchen
and question coming in she won not me
and whose you know there was a secret and everything was attention to detail
he believes the team room or or your the shopping floor
that's right always watching always getting it done
what not to be bring up a sad note but
John Donnell and Alan sector what was it happened in the marketplace
that eventually made it impossible for us staggers to continue was just
changing times and
the big national retail chains that they could over
by and undersell a family store lakes Tigers national chain
really was I'll and the car and we could sense it coming
but the and as you know we were bought by
the may company question turned they were sold from May sheesh
show that pot which getting bigger and bigger and we just couldn't be
competitively really a peanut compared to
so many others cell her we saw the handwriting on the wall in a
kinda for shower and really to to give you
arm an example of what happened to the industry
when I first went to work its Tigers and would take the train to New York
I on the train were buyers who hid
got onto the train in North Hampton from the old McCallum's
and Springfield the buyer since Tigers in for some hours to get on the train
we've got Enfield Connecticut in the buyers from women's specialty retailer
which is the parent to casual corner and so on we get on the train
in Hartford the buyers from a sage Allen
and chief ox and Davidson 11 fall
and so on all the way through New Haven balinese and Bridgeport reads
and the train was fought by the time we got New York and
if I were to take the same train today I think I would probably be the lone
writer from downtown Springfield to
to Hartford show arm the whole
not only did though retail marketplace change from the consumer perspective
but from the business model perspective it's
it's totally different well
staggers gone but not forgotten and greatly missed by an awful lot of
Assyrian
western Massachusetts Alan stagger john donovan
show that and thank you all for being with us sharing some your memories
thank you they appeared