Counter Cultures: Saleswomen, Managers, and Customers in American Department Stores, 1890-1940"The luxurious appearance and handsome profits of American department stores from 1890 to 1940 masked a three-way struggle among saleswomen, managers, and customers for control of the selling floor. Counter Cultures explores the complex nature and contradictions of the conflict in an arena where class, gender, and the emerging culture of consumption all came together. Counter Cultures is a path-breaking and imaginative social history. Benson has made an original and sophisticated contribution to the study of the work process in the service sector. "-- Back cover. |
Contents
Introduction | 1 |
185090 | 12 |
Organizing the Department Store | 31 |
Managing DepartmentStore Customers | 75 |
From the Shopgirl to the Skilled Saleswoman | 124 |
DepartmentStore Saleswomen | 177 |
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Common terms and phrases
advertising appeal attract became BNRDGA Bonwit Teller Bureau buyers buying Christine Frederick clerks clientele consumer costs counter culture of consumption customers demand department stores department-store managers department-store selling DGC & FGR Dry Goods Economist earnings efficiency efforts employees executives factory fashion female Filene Filene's firms functional gender History of Marshall Hortense Odlum Hower incentive increase industry John Wanamaker Jordan Marsh July June labor less Lord & Taylor Macy Macy's manufacturing Marshall Field ment stores merchants organization palace of consumption part-time partment store percent personnel problems produced profits purchases salaries sales force Salesmanship salespeople salesperson saleswomen selling departments selling floor Sept shopgirl shoppers Simmons College skilled selling social sold store managers style System T. J. Jackson tion tomers trade Twyman urban wage Wanamaker's welfare Wide-Awake Retailing woman women's culture writer York