From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Thom McAn
Thom McAn
Thom McAn is a brand of shoes distributed by Footstar,
Inc., formerly the Melville Corporation (now known as
CVS Caremark). The brand is currently sold in Kmart and
Wal-Mart stores, and consists of leather dress, casual, and
athletic shoes (under its Tm Sport label). Until the 1990s,
Thom McAn had hundreds of retail stores in the US, and
was one of the oldest and best known shoe retailers in the
country.
Thom McAn logo
Ward Melville, chairman of the Melville Corporation,
introduced the new Thom McAn shoe line in 1922, open- The after-image of a Thom McAn store sign in a shopping mall
after the sign’s removal
ing the first Thom McAn retail store in New York. The
brand was named after Scottish golfer Thomas McCann.
Within five years, 300 stores were open, and by 1939 Melville closed 350 of the remaining 740 Thom McAn
there were over 650 stores. stores. In 1996, Melville converted 85 Thom McAn stores
The brand achieved the peak of its popularity and into Footaction outlets, and it closed the remaining 200
near iconic status from the 1950s to the 1970s, due to its stores, ending the storied existence of the Worcester,
combination of quality leather and affordability. There Massachusetts, based retailer. Melville divested itself of
were 850 Thom McAn stores in the United States in 1955, all of its shoe retailing business, focusing on its CVS drug
and Melville became the largest American shoe retailer stores. A new corporation, Footstar, was created from the
by the 1970s, operating 1,400 stores. former Melville shoe lines.
The popularity of sneakers in the 1980s hurt Thom
McAn sales, and Melville Corp. began to focus on its References
USA.
sporting footwear division, Footaction USA More than
a third of Thom McAn outlets were closed during this
decade. See also
The trend away from conservative leather casual • G.R. Kinney Company, also known as Kinney Shoes
shoes toward sneakers continued in the 1990s. In 1992,
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Thom_McAn&oldid=447669256"
Categories:
• Shoe brands
• Companies based in Worcester, Massachusetts
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