Also known as The Grand-Leader, SBF's building
covered the whole block between Sixth, Seventh,
Washington and Lucas Streets
Stix, Baer & Fuller Co. (1892/1906/1919/1948)601 Washington Avenue
St. Louis, Missouri 63101
DOWNTOWN STORE DIRECTORY
First Floor
Precious Jewelry • Fashion Jewelry • Handbags • Small Leather Goods • Belts • Gloves • Accessory Bars • Hosiery • Scarves • Headwear • Cosmetics • Avenue Blouses • Avenue Sweaters • Avenue Sportswear • Avenue Shoes • Stationery • Cameras • Candy
Store for Men Men's Cosmetics • Smokle Shop • Men's Accessories • Men's Furnishings • Men's Neckwear • Men's Loungewear • Men's Shirts • Men's Sportswear • Men's Shoes • Campus Shop • New Breed Shop • Contemporary Man • Men's Clothing • Men's Outerwear • Izod Shop • Stix Pub
Mezzanine
Travel Service • Customer Lounge • Gift Wrap
Second Floor
Platters Restaurant
Young Flair Junior Sportswear • Junior Dresses • Junior Coats • Junior Shoes • Junior Lingerie
The Children's Shops Infants • Todddlers's Wear • Little Boys' Wear • Boys' Wear • Little Girls' Wear • Girls' Wear • Stixteen Shop • Girls' Accessories • Children's Shoes
Third Floor
Avenue Dresses • Women's World • Casual Dresses • Uniforms • The Dress ShopvThe Knit Shop • Avenue Coats • The Coat Shop • Leather Shop • Rainwear • Sport Shop • Sweaters • Blouses • Swim Shop • Sportswear Separates • Misses' Shoes • Shoe Salon • Etienne Aigner Boutique • The Shop for Pappagallo • Individualist Dress Shop • Sports Individualist • Mis SBF Shop • Miss SBF Sport • Signature Dresses • Signature Sportswear • Lion Country • Evan Picone Shop • Status Jeans • The Ms. Shop • Better Coats • Designer's Salon • Designer Sportswear • Fur Salon • Bridal Salon • Foundations • Lingerie • Daywear • Sleepwear • Loungewear • Trendsetter Lingerie • Maternity Shop
Fourth Floor
Linens • Bath Shop • Curtains • Draperies • Fashion Fabrics • Sewing Machines • Art Needlework • China • Silver • Glassware • Crystal • Waterford Galleries • Fine China • Gift Shop • Trim-A-Tree Shop • Gnome Shop
Fifth Floor
Furniture • Bedding • Furniture Accessories • Pictures • Mirrors • Lamps
Sixth Floor
Housewares • Small Appliances • The Cookin' Place • The Gourmet Shop • The Missouri Room Resturant • Missouri Express • Major Appliances • Conservation Center • Televisions • Music Salon • Records • Books • Toys • Sporting Goods • Garden Center • Drugs
Seventh Floor
Customer Service • Credit Office • Cash Office • Beauty Salon • Executive Offices
Eighth Floor
Community Room
BRANCH STORES
Clayton
River Roads (1961)Jennings
Crestwood (1969)
St. Louis
240,000 sq. ft.
Ward Parkway (1971)
Kansas City
202,000 sq. ft.
Jamestown (1973)
Florissant
Independence Mall (1974)
Independence
175,000 sq. ft.
Oak Park Mall (1975)
Overland Park, KS
205,000 sq. ft.
Chesterfield Mall (1976)
Chesterfield
Northwest Plaza (1977)
St. Ann
218,000 sq. ft.
Stix was an excellent store and a great counterpart to Famous Barr. They were eventually taken over by Dillard's; the Westroad store was demolished in '85 to make way for the Galleria.
ReplyDeleteI remember when a dog belonging to the Stix family was picked up by a Famous Barr delivery driver. The the next day thanked the driver but said "I'm happiest back under my own tree" (The Stix symbol)
ReplyDeleteAn SBF employee, downtown,(assistant buyer, men's furnishings)then Crestwood Plaza (area manager)Crestwood opened about 1966-67, and at that time DT store men's clothing, sportswear were located 4th floor as was the tea room, 7th floor was furniture & Williamsburg Tavern, 8th floor was stockroom, 11th floor employees cafeteria and lounge. Cubby Baer's office was high up, and he used to hold afternoon conference-brainstorming sessions with younger employees there. Escallators went up only to 7th floor, elevators rest of the way up. Coffee shop on the first floor. SBF was the best St Louis had to offer!
ReplyDeleteSupposedly, Stix was to "rebuild" their downtown store (gut? demolish? remodel?) their store for the 1980s opening of St. Louis Centre as a full flagship still (six levels of selling space, new offices above) but it fell through and it opened as a three-level Dillard's instead.
ReplyDeleteYes, in preparation for the St. Louis Centre Mall, SBF proposed a full scale remodel of their downtown store. As noted this would have maintained the downtown Stix as a full line flagship store.
DeleteThis plan was predicated on Associated Dry Goods (the parent co) and Stix receiving a number of tax breaks, and low interest loans.
The govt. of St. Louis balked at this, as it was felt enough incentives were already given for the mall itself. After the requests were declined, ADG sold the building and leased back 3 floors for a much more spartan, and smaller downtown Stix store. In 1984 Dillard's bought the Stix chain from ADG, and operated the small downtown store for a time, before downgrading it to a clearance
store and finally closing it for good in 2000.
St. Louis Centre opened strong, but it failed, and it now closed.
Ken
PS I worked for the ADG chain Hahne & Co., during this time, which is why I know all this. The 1983 ADG Annual Report has a synopsis of this as well.
I have several "pieces" of the RiverRoads Stix - somehow, a lot of things were left in there for years after it, and the mall, were closed and boarded up. I was inside there several times at length between 2003 and early 2007 just before demolition began. It was like walking into an eerie time capsule, shut off to the world for decades. Even much of the Pavilion Restaurant was intact, almost like a Twilight Zone.
ReplyDeleteWe are living in a Twilight Zone, I fear.
ReplyDeleteThe Jamestown branch was the first real department store for me. My first visit there was in 1975 when I was 10. Four floors AND escalators!!! I miss the TV ads with the "rotating" SBF logo and flourish. Famous-Barr's ads didn't seem to have that same panache. Stix also had a location in suburban Kansas City at Independence Center with a GLASS ELEVATOR!!!! They acquired Bressmer's of Springfield, Illinois around 1980 with 2 locations: 613 E. Adams St. and White Oaks Mall.
ReplyDeleteThe first retail job I had was at Stix in River Roads in 1975. I was 19 and in college. I worked in the Avenue Shoes Department on the first floor for a gentleman named Robert Wright. He was a great inspiration for me, and always seemed to find "extra hours" for me to work as he knew my family situation(my father was dying from colon cancer). I am still in retail today, largely because of what I learned from Bob, especially on how to treat people with respect. (37 year veteran of the retail trade)
ReplyDeleteRecently acquired a beautiful set of Haviland French Limoge marked Stix Baer and Fuller. Regretfully there is no pattern marked. It is a dainty rose pattern on the edge connected with a small gold line bordered in black and has gold trimmed edges. There are six place settings and many serving pieces. I hope to find the name of this pattern and perhaps a couple more place settings. Vague I know, but I have searched in vain online at many sites. Maybe a former customer will recognize my description. Thanx.
ReplyDeleteI worked my way through college in the Stix Baer and Fuller tearoom at Westroads in Clayton. I started as a senior in high school in 1969. I have many happy memories there of good people and good food.
ReplyDeleteJill Frasure Henderson
We recently acquired a ladies medium size "mink" fur coat, with the label Stix, Baer and Fuller. It is in excellent shape and was wondering if there could be a value on it? Anyone have any ideas where we could search further? Thanks. will keep checking here for any answers. Nov '12
ReplyDeleteI think the Stix Westroads store is still standing. It was part of the small Westroads mall. The store has been greatly enlarged as a Dillards store as part of the also much-enlarged and renamed Galleria mall. In the original portion of the former Stix store, you can tell it is an older building although it's obviously been updated. For example, note the very narrow escalator going to the basement, which houses the childrens department. Escalators would not be built so narrow these days. I was just at the store shopping a few days ago.
ReplyDeletei work in the 8th foor bakery as a 18 year kid i remember i ate all the donuts i wanted
ReplyDeleteMy grandmother worked in the customer service department dealing with customer complaints for many years in the 1950s-60s. I remember going in the elevator with my grandfather to pick her up in her office. We always then went to the Orient Restaurant several blocks away (where they ate chow mien and I always had a turkey sandwich and chocolate milk — hey, I was only 5 or 6) Then we would go to to the movie...the movie houses werecso grand back then. I also remember going downtown at Christmas to see all the department stores ...Stix, Bear & Fuller, Scruggs Vandervoort & Barney and Famous Barr... all decked out for Christmas. I would always have my picture made with Santa at Stix.
ReplyDeleteHappy memories of going to Stix shopping downtown St. Louis. The stores were so special, nothing like clone stores today with no personality. As a kid, i remember them as gigantic and was always afraid I'd get lost. We would always shop there and Famous-Barr and think they were the most special, cool places on earth. If only we could go back.......
ReplyDeleteI began my professional career as a radio dispatcher with security in the downtown store in 1978. The security dispatch office was in the northwest corner of the first floor at the employee entrance. The security director was Craig Clark and the security manager of the downtown store at that time was Don Allen and then Jerry McDaniels. I was elevated to floor detective at the newly opened store in south county and was promoted to manager of security at Stix Westroads. Art Sherman was the store manager and my best friend Dan Reed was the mens sportswear manager. In between I worked the floor at Riveroads and Northwest Plaza. I have tremendously fond memories of Stix. It was a great place to work and my favorite assignment was the Westroads location due to the fact that I worked there the longest, met and became friends with some wonderful people, and I had actually grown up just west of there on Thorndell drive off of McKight Road in Richmond Heights. I was fortunate to know many fine people who worked for the company.
ReplyDeleteI purchased a SBF, Inc. sewing machine at a yard sale in St. Charles, MO. I'm looking for anyone who can tell me who the actual manufacturer was so I can find a manual.
ReplyDeletei also have a full length sbf mink and leather coat. have you found any info on yours
ReplyDeleteGreat memories of going to Stix at Westroads with my grandmother in the 70's. I remember big glass doors with the Stix logo on the big metal handles and a candy counter. In the 1980's I worked at Dillard's for a few years in the downtown location after St. Louis Centre opened.
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone remember a nursery or daycare situation where mothers could drop off their children while they shopped? There was a boatlike plaything that we could get onto. It was either Stix or Famous but I think it was here.
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone remember the frozen fruit cocktail that was served with a chicken salad sandwich.
ReplyDeleteemail me if you do travel85@att.net
Thanks