{"product_id":"we-were-merchants-the-sternberg-family-and-the-story-of-goudchauxs-and-maison-blanche-department-stores","title":"We Were Merchants: The Sternberg Family and the Story of Goudchaux's and Maison Blanche Department Stores","description":"The words \"Goudchauxs\/Maison Blanche\" conjure up a wealth of fond memories for local shoppers. At this landmark Louisiana department store  clerks greeted you by name; children received a nickel to buy a Coke and for every report-card A; families anticipated the holiday arrival of the beloved puppet Mr. Bingle almost as much as Santa; teenagers applied for their first job; and customers enjoyed interest-free charge accounts and personal assistance selecting attire and gifts for the most significant occasions in life -- baptisms  funerals  and everything in between. While most former patrons have a favorite story to tell about Goudchauxs\/Maison Blanche  not many know the personal tale behind this beloved institution. In We Were Merchants  Hans Sternberg provides a captivating account of how his parents  Erich and Lea  fled from Nazi Germany to the United States  embraced their new home  and together with their children built Goudchauxs into a Baton Rouge legend that eventually became Goudchauxs\/Maison Blanche -- an independent retail force during the golden era of the department store and  by 1989  the largest family-owned department store in America. With a mercantile line extending back five generations to a small shop in eighteenth-century Germany  the Sternbergs were born to be shopkeepers. In 1936  as Nazi harassment of Jews intensified  Erich smuggled $24 000 out of Germany and settled in Baton Rouge. His wife and three children joined him a year later  and in 1939  Erich bought Goudchauxs and set about transforming it from a nondescript apparel shop into a true department store. He made buying trips to New York for quality fashions and furs  introduced imaginative sales promotions  and coached his staff in impeccable customer service  while also training his children to follow in his footsteps. Hans details the manifold challenges of operating the store -- from planning financial strategies and creating marketing campaigns to implementing desegregation and accommodating the repeal of blue laws. Through many transforming events -- Erichs death in 1965  expansion into suburban shopping malls  the purchase in the 1980s of New Orleans retail icon Maison Blanche -- the Sternbergs successfully maintained the companys core values: quality merchandise  employee loyalty  and superior customer service. At its height  Goudchauxs\/Maison Blanche operated twenty-four stores in Louisiana and Florida and employed more than 8 000 people. With the economic downturn of the early 1990s  Hans made the difficult decision to sell the business  thus bringing to an end the Sternbergs centuries-long mercantile tradition. Supplementing the fascinating narrative are the recollections of former customers and employees  a wealth of pertinent photos  and even Hanss tried-and-true guidelines for negotiating a business transaction. At once a family  business  and community story  We Were Merchants richly recalls a bygone era when department stores were near-magical wonderlands and family businesses commanded the retail landscape.","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44855879663669,"sku":"ByrdShop_080713449X","price":48.76,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/ByrdShop_080713449X_bfa7b3f1-643f-4509-bda3-b24ad1784da8.jpg?v=1765969694","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/we-were-merchants-the-sternberg-family-and-the-story-of-goudchauxs-and-maison-blanche-department-stores","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}