Von Maur is an upscale specialty department store chain with virtually all stores
located in the Midwestern United States. The chain, based in Davenport, Iowa,
sells moderate to upscale brand-name apparel, accessories, cosmetics, gifts, jewelry
and shoes. As of March 2007, the chain has 22 stores in nine states. (A planned
store opening for 2010 in Missouri will mark the chain's entry into a tenth
state.) All of its stores are anchors of shopping malls or lifestyle centers.
A hallmark of some of the Von Maur services are a no-interest bearing credit
card account, free shipping and free gift wrapping. Another signature element
of Von Maur stores is a live pianist who performs for customers during normal business
hours. It competes on the same level as Nordstrom, Lord and Taylor, and
Bloomingdales.
In 1872 German immigrant J. H. C. Petersen and his three
sons opened a store in a 20-foot-by-50-foot storefront in downtown Davenport,
Iowa. The store would eventually expand and move into the Redstone Building
at 2nd and Main Streets in Davenport. In 1916, the J. H. C. Petersen Company
sold their store to a partnership of R.H. Harned, C.J. von Maur, and Cable
von Maur. C.J. von Maur, who also came from Germany, established the Boston Store
(later renamed Harned & Von Maur) in downtown Davenport in 1887. Despite the
common ownership, Petersen's and Harned & Von Maur would continue to operate
as separate stores for twelve years, even after C.J. von Maur died in 1926. On
May 7, 1928, Harned & Von Maur merged with the Petersen's store in the Redstone
Building. The store was renamed Petersen Harned Von Maur, which was often shortened
to "Petersen's". The von Maur family assumed complete ownership of the store
after R.H. Harned died in 1937. |
