F. W. Woolworth
| Frank Winfield Woolworth | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
April 13, 1852 Rodman, New York |
| Died | April 8, 1919 (aged 66) Glen Cove, New York |
| Resting place | Woodlawn Cemetery |
| Residence | Winfield Hall |
| Education | Watertown Commercial College |
| Known for | Founded F. W. Woolworth Company (now Foot Locker) |
| Net worth | USD ~ $76.5 million |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Jennie Creighton (m. 1876) |
| Children | Helena Maud Woolworth McCann Edna Woolworth Hutton Jessie May Woolworth Donahue |
| Parent(s) | John Hubbell Woolworth Fanny McBrier |
| Relatives |
Charles S. Woolworth (brother) Barbara Hutton (granddaughter) Seymour H. Knox I (cousin) |
Frank Winfield Woolworth (April 13, 1852 – April 8, 1919) also known as Frank W. Woolworth or F.W. Woolworth was an American entrepreneur and the founder of F. W. Woolworth Company and the operator of variety stores known as "Five-and-Dimes" (5- and 10-cent stores) or dimestores, which featured a low-priced selection of merchandise. He pioneered the now-common practices of buying merchandise directly from manufacturers and fixing the selling prices on items, rather than haggling. He was also the first to use self-service display cases, so customers could examine what they wanted to buy without the help of a sales clerk.
Frank Woolworth was born in Rodman, New York, to John Hubbell Woolworth (1821–1907) and Fanny Woolworth (née McBrier; 1832–1878), and had a brother, entrepreneur Charles Sumner Woolworth (1856–1947). His parents, John and Fanny Woolworth, were devout Methodists and sympathetic to the Northern side during the Civil War - they raised their two sons, Frank Winfield and Charles Sumner, accordingly.
At the age of four, Woolworth told his parents that one day he would become one of the peddlers that sometimes came calling; he and Charles would play "store"; Frank would set up merchandise to be sold to his brother. As was common at the time, Woolworth finished his schooling at the age of sixteen, yet with only basic knowledge and no experience he was unfit to begin working in any legitimate store. Undeterred, he applied to many shops in the area, every time receiving a resounding “No." Woolworth attended a business college for two terms in Watertown, New York, after having received a loan from his mother.
In 1873, Woolworth worked as a stock boy in a general store called Augsbury & Moore's Drygoods in Watertown. His first experiences at Augsbury & Moore’s would serve as the starting point to his own business venture and innovations. Woolworth was by all accounts an inept salesman. He was instead given jobs such as washing the windows, where he found a creative niche in arranging the store’s front display. His work was so impressive that his boss, after his first attempt, assigned Woolworth that role from thereafter. Woolworth learned the difficulty with the typical business practice, in which few items were labeled with price tickets and a clerk was responsible for obtaining an item for the customer and making the transaction. It was from these early experiences that Woolworth developed the notion that goods should sell themselves, something which became increasingly prominent in his retail career.
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