Content area
Full Text
From swap meets to Susie's Deals, the 8-store women's apparel chain, the Hymans have kept discount retailing all in the family.
Founded by siblings Stephen, Howard, David and Susan Hyman, the City of Industry, Calif.-based chain has remained a family affair as it has expanded throughout California and beyond
The quartet began selling knick-knacks at swap meets in the early 1970s, when they were in their teens. Susan, in fact, had to hire a driver to take her to the meets in the early days. At 15, she was too young to have a driver's license.
"I was the only kid in town with a wad of cash on her," recalls Susan Hyman, vp-merchandise and marketing.
With the exception of transportation, however, the Hymans' youth was an advantage. They were their customer.
"We were young ourselves, and we understood the young. So we started selling to the junior customer," Hyman says.
A natural competitiveness helped, as each of the four siblings strove to make the most sales per day, even though the funds were pooled at the end of the day.
A family background in retailing didn't hurt, either. The siblings' paternal grandfather was a traveling garment salesman, their father owned a small store in Rosemead, Calif., and the mother owned a shop in Eagle Rock, Calif.
Eventually, the four were working booths at swap meets at 15...