Shopping Bag Masterpieces!

For over 100 years, one retail mecca not only brought its customers the best of the fashion world, it boldly went where no store has gone before. Creating a slew of designer shopping bags highlighting anything from a seasonal event to a launch of a new fragrance. These satchels of commerce quickly became collectors items and I was fortunate to have collected most of them. Of course, I'm talking about Bloomingdale's. "Bloomie's" as it was known to by its fans, is the quintessential place to browse, shop, buy and mingle with the famous and infamous, but from the 1960's through the early 1990's it was known as a mecca, a museum of retail-ology not found much anymore today. For it was Bloomie's that originated and perfected the promotion of anything and everything imaginable. Remember the "Pet Rock", it was featured first at Bloomie's. Both Ralph Lauren and Donna Karan started their careers there as well.


Who would've thought that something used to carry out a purchase would become a pop-culture classic and highly collectible around the world? Bloomingdale's classic "big brown bag" is as much of an icon as "Coca-Cola" is today.


Rather then give you individual pictures of some 60+ bags I've collected over the years, I decided to make a collage and link it to YouTube. I would appreciate any and all feedback and if you notice in the film, there are a few "unknown" bags I would certainly appreciate any help on their identities.

A Shopping Center is Born

This really isn't my expertise, I have more knowledge of general retail and collect it's past. But these videos (actually the same video, but I had to split it up for youtube) depict Hillsdale Shopping Center which was recently built in 1957 when the film was shot. This link provides you with the current mall tenants and expansion as we know it today.

Some of the fascinating items I enjoy on this film are the vintage signs, cars, fashions, lifestyle, and most of all, the need to actually create a film on the subject, almost a class as to "how to shop" in these newfangled centers.

Imagine if you will, something we take for granted, the actual mall as we know it, but at the time of filming, this was a new concept unheard of before. The rush to live outside the downtown area had begun not long prior and people were moving into the suburbs. To actually have all of your shopping done in one convenient center was unheard of. So I imagine that was the need for this film. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!