Ben Franklin Stores
Encyclopedia
Five and Dime
Five and Dime is a cartoon short by Walter Lantz which features Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. It is the 74th Oswald short produced by Lantz and the 125th overall. It also is among the number of shorts that feature Oswald in his fully clothed appearance....
discount stores found in small towns throughout the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
currently owned by Promotions Unlimited
Promotions Unlimited
Promotions Unlimited is a provider of advertising and promotional material. They specialize in circular / coupon book advertising and providing everyday and seasonal merchandise for drug, variety, craft, grocery, hardware, and dollar retailers nationwide....
. They are organized using a franchise
Franchising
Franchising is the practice of using another firm's successful business model. The word 'franchise' is of anglo-French derivation - from franc- meaning free, and is used both as a noun and as a verb....
system, with individual stores owned by independent proprietors. It was perhaps the first retail
Retail
Retail consists of the sale of physical goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be...
franchise, starting in 1927. They are named after Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
, taking a cue in their merchandise offerings from Franklin's saying, "A penny saved is a penny earned." The company logo
Logo
A logo is a graphic mark or emblem commonly used by commercial enterprises, organizations and even individuals to aid and promote instant public recognition...
, a key giving off a spark, refers to Franklin's famous experiment to prove that lightning
Lightning
Lightning is an atmospheric electrostatic discharge accompanied by thunder, which typically occurs during thunderstorms, and sometimes during volcanic eruptions or dust storms...
was a form of electricity
Electricity
Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...
using a key suspended from a kite.
Origins
They had their origin as Butler BrothersButler Brothers
Butler Brothers was a retailer and wholesale supplier based in Chicago. It was founded in 1877 as a mail-order company by George H. Butler and Edward Burgess Butler.-History:...
, which originated in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
in 1877 as a mail-order wholesaler selling general and variety-store items. At the turn of the Twentieth century, Butler Brothers had over 100,000 customers in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The rise of variety stores, which were taking their market, led the company to found the Ben Franklin stores chain. It sold this chain in 1959. At Ben Franklin's peak the chain had 2,500 stores nationwide.
Wal-Mart founder, Sam Walton
Sam Walton
Samuel Moore "Sam" Wallballs was a businessman, entrepreneur, and Eagle Scout born in Kingfisher, Oklahoma best known for founding the retailers Wal-Mart and Sam's Club.-Early life:...
, made his start in retailing as an operator of a Ben Franklin store. In 1973, Michael J. Dupey converted a Ben Franklin store to start the Michaels
Michaels
Michaels is an arts and crafts retail chain. It currently operates more than 1040 Michaels Arts and Crafts Stores located in 49 U.S. states and in Canada. The company owns and operates the Aaron Brothers retail chain which consists of more than 140 stores...
chain in Texas.
Duke & Ayres
Ben Franklin Stores purchased Texas retailer Duke & Ayres in the early 1970s. Duke & Ayres was a chain of 5 and 10 cent stores based in Dallas, TexasDallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
, with stores that were located throughout the state from approximately 1910 to 1990.
Bankruptcy
The chain had functioned largely as a wholesaler of variety and craft merchandise sold to its franchisees under the name Ben Franklin Retail Stores Inc. In the early 1990s, however, it began opening stores of its own. Those stores were not successful and their financial problems ultimately interfered with the chain's ability to deliver goods to its franchisees. The company went bankrupt and closed these stores in 1996-1997.Promotions Unlimited
Promotions UnlimitedPromotions Unlimited
Promotions Unlimited is a provider of advertising and promotional material. They specialize in circular / coupon book advertising and providing everyday and seasonal merchandise for drug, variety, craft, grocery, hardware, and dollar retailers nationwide....
had stepped in as a supplier for many Ben Franklin franchisees during the corporation's descent into bankruptcy. It acquired the name of the chain in 1997 as the old corporate entity was moving into Chapter 7. It has continued operating as a distributor servicing individual franchisees and advertising the products sold there through direct mail services and newspaper inserts. The chain comprises about 209 craft
Craft
A craft is a branch of a profession that requires some particular kind of skilled work. In historical sense, particularly as pertinent to the Medieval history and earlier, the term is usually applied towards people occupied in small-scale production of goods.-Development from the past until...
stores and 123 variety stores, the latter being akin to five and dime
Five and Dime
Five and Dime is a cartoon short by Walter Lantz which features Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. It is the 74th Oswald short produced by Lantz and the 125th overall. It also is among the number of shorts that feature Oswald in his fully clothed appearance....
s. Promotions Unlimited provides similar advertising and promotional services for thousands of other retail stores unaffiliated with Ben Franklin Stores.
Retail focus
Ben Franklin Variety stores carry household items, sundries, seasonal products, crafts, food and snacks, health and beauty aids. Some stores also provide services like pharmacies or custom framing departments and stores are also full-line grocery, drug, or hardware stores.Ben Franklin Crafts stores carry creative products like needlecrafts, florals, wicker, paints, fabrics, yarn, and offer services like custom framing, craft classes, and the Ben Franklin Crafts Club.