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Jim von Maur
President, Von Maur
HEADQUARTERS TYPE OF BUSINESS NUMBER OF STORES
Davenport, Iowa
Department store retailer
35 in 11 states (27 Von Maur stores, eight Dry Goods stores)
Seventeen years ago, in the January 1 996 issue of Chain Store Age, Jack Arth, who at the time was president of Von Maur, explained how the circa 1928 department store retailer set out to differentiate itself from competitors such as the then hugely influential Federated and May chains.
"One, we had to do some things [the majors] don't do," Arth said in the article. "And two, we had to leave downtowns for regional malls. But that's not all. It was important that we do more for the customer."
Although Arth moved on from Von Maur more than a decade ago, the changes he described would ultimately define who the retailer is today. What once was a downtown Iowa concept has evolved into a 27-store, customer-centric and fashion-forward department store leader - one that is expanding and entering new markets while some others are reducing their portfolios, one that is bolstering sales forces while those others cut staff. The family-owned company opened its second location in the Atlanta metro area last fall, and is set to make its Alabama debut this November, at Riverchase Galleria, in the Birmingham suburb of Hoover. It will enter Oklahoma in late 20 14, at Quail Springs Mall in Oklahoma City.
Von Maur is also growing its young women's specialtystore format, Dry Goods. Launched in 2010, the brand has opened eight locations to date. A national expansion plan is in place.
Chain Store Age senior editor Katherine Boccaccio talked with president and fourth-generation family leader Jim von Maur about the evolution of Von Maur, and how the company has...