TheG.R. Kinney Companywas anAmericanmanufacturer and retailer of shoes from 1894[1]until September 16, 1998.[2]It was listed on theNew York Stock Exchangein March 1923, with the symbol KNN.[3]The shoe concern was started by George Romanta Kinney whose father ran ageneral storein ruralCandor, New York.The father became indebted and George vowed to repay his debts. In 1894, at the age of 28, he had saved enough to purchase a Lester retail outlet inWaverly, New York.Lester Shoe ofBinghamton, New Yorkwas the predecessor to theEndicott Johnson Corporation.Kinney succeeded by selling affordably priced shoes to working Americans.[4]
 G.R. Kinneyc. 1919 | |
| Founded | 1894 Waverly, NY,U.S. |
|---|---|
| Founder | George Romanta Kinney |
| Defunct | September 16, 1998 |
| Fate | Business reorganization |
| Successor | Foot Locker |
Area served | United States,Canada,Puerto Rico |
Thebusiness chainnumbered 362 stores at the conclusion of 1929, with 44 of these opening in the final year of the decade.[5]Foot Lockerbegan as a division of the Kinney Shoe Corporation in 1974.[6]
Chain and later a subsidiary
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Kinney Shoes was the largest family chain shoe retailer in theUnited Statesat the beginning of 1936, with 335 stores operating nationwide.[7]Although it was selling more shoes at the conclusion of 1936 than in 1929, its dollar volume was 20% to 30% below 1929.[8]
On August 31, 1963, the G.R. Kinney Company was sold toF.W. Woolworth.[2]Prior to this it was a subsidiary of theBrown Shoe Companywhich sold it for $45 million.[9]The firm was renamed the Kinney Shoe Corporation and continued as a fully owned subsidiary of Woolworth.[10]It retained its own eleven member board of directors and an existing panel of corporate officers.
Foot Locker exclusivity
editThe company continued operating throughout the 1960s and 1970s with divisions named Stylco (1967), Susie Casuals (1968), and Foot Locker (1974).[10]On September 16, 1998, theVenator Group,formerly known as Woolworth, announced that Kinney's 467 shoe stores and 103 Footquarters stores would close. The Foot Locker division, started in 1974, continues to this day, with Venator changing its name in 2001 to Foot Locker.[4]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^"G.R. Kinney Co. Sales".The Wall Street Journal.April 9, 1930. p. 6.
- ^ab"Brown Shoe Co".The Wall Street Journal.December 3, 1964. p. 28.
- ^"Topics In Wall Street".The New York Times.March 30, 1923. p. 24.
- ^abKinney Shoe Corporation webpage, internet article.[full citation needed]
- ^"G.R. Kinney Sales Up".The Wall Street Journal.January 9, 1930. p. 9.
- ^Kinney Shoe Corporation,internet article.[full citation needed]
- ^"G.R. Kinney Shows Net of $22,748 For Last Year".The Wall Street Journal.January 30, 1936. p. 9.
- ^"Kinney Co. Calls Meeting to Eliminate Operating Deficit".The Wall Street Journal.December 4, 1936. p. 10.
- ^"Investing In Yourself".The Wall Street Journal.June 30, 1965. p. 1.
- ^abMcDermott, Kathleen (1994).Retail Revolutionary: Kinney Shoe Corporation's First Century in Footwear.Cambridge. Archived fromthe originalon August 22, 2006.RetrievedMarch 23,2009.