Goldmann's on way out

Icon of old Mitchell St. shopping district, 111-year-old department store is to close for good in October

By DORIS HAJEWSKI
dhajewski@journalsentinel.com

Posted: May 29, 2007

A Milwaukee icon, the 55,000-square-foot general merchandise emporium outlasted Schuster's, Gimbels, Kunzelmann-Esser, The Grand, Singers and others on a long list of stores that once graced Mitchell St.

"We give better values," owner Milton Pivar said with a smile. "And I think a lot had to do with we know what we're doing."

Between S. 6th and 16th streets, Mitchell St. was the premier shopping area for the south side at the middle of the 20th century.

Sales at Goldmann's peaked about 30 years ago at $4.5 million a year. Now the store does about $3 million a year, in part by selling large sizes and items that are hard to find elsewhere.

Men's belts, for example, go up to 70 inches. And in a world where 56K means a slow modem to most people, it's a bra size at Goldmann's, available in purple.

Snuggies are a big draw, too. Retirement homes bring in busloads of residents who are delighted to be able to buy the sensible, warm cotton underpants they've worn for 70 years, said Jerry Lewis, who owns Goldmann's with Pivar.

The men bought the store in 1988, and they say Goldmann's is still a viable business. But the owners are both nearly 79 years old.

"Nothing is forever," said Pivar. "It was a difficult decision to make."

For shoppers who remember Goldmann's from its heyday, a visit is like a trip into a time warp. Nothing has changed, including the linoleum on the floor, where holes are patched with duct tape and edges are curled from wear.

The faded green exterior was last remodeled in 1956, but the inside is older.

"We have a wide assortment of mismatched counters," Pivar said. "They make Goldmann's unique. We don't sell counters, we sell merchandise."

Shortly after Goldmann's celebrated its 100th anniversary, it became something of a living retail museum. Tourists stop to eat burgers at the lunch counter. And natives who left the city years ago come back for a visit and are delighted to climb the creaky stairs to the balcony, where lamp shades of all sizes flank the narrow aisle.

"A lot of people say, 'Don't ever close Goldmann's. I like it here,' " Pivar said.

"We have so many people who come in here once a year for their jaunt," Diederich said. "They buy some candy raisins. But you can't stay in business doing that."

Still, Pivar encourages bus tours. Next month he'll get a visit from a group of women combining Goldmann's with a trip to the Marcus Center to see Doc Severinsen.

Pivar will greet the group on the bus, talk about the store's history, and give out "I love Goldmann's" buttons.

Goldmann's opened as a dry goods store in 1896 and stayed with the founding family until Pivar and Lewis bought it in 1988. Pivar's father had owned and operated the men's clothing department within the store, and Pivar started working there with him when he was 12 years old.

"I didn't want the store to close, so I got together with Mr. Lewis and bought the store, instead of retiring like a normal person would do," Pivar recalled.

He still puts in 60 hours a week in the store, taking the stairs without hesitation. Until a few years ago, he worked on the selling floor, along with Lewis.

But it's hard to compete with big box stores and discounters these days, Pivar said. Goldmann's has people on the selling floor who help customers find what they want, and they know many of them by name. There are no central checkout counters.

"It's not like we have to close," Pivar said. "We're doing some business. But there's getting to be less and less demand for a store like this.

"We're going out when the time is right. We can hold our heads up high. We don't have to say we were pushed out of business."

Pivar and Lewis sold the Goldmann building for $625,000 to Don Kim, owner of Milwaukee City Sports, an athletic shoe store at the Midtown shopping center; and DK USA Development Co.

Kim plans to open a second athletic shoe store in the lower level and to lease out space on the first and second floors. He expects to spend about $2.5 million on renovations and is hoping to qualify for city assistance for the plan.

Kim plans to keep the Goldmann name on the building and will allocate space on the main floor near the front door for a Goldmann's Department Store museum that will be free and open to the public.

"I would like to keep all that tradition," Kim said.