Stanley Marcus, Neiman Marcus icon, dead at 96
Associated Press
DALLAS — Stanley Marcus, whose name has been synonymous with high-dollar retailing and extravagant gifts for nearly a century, died yesterday at 96.
Associated Press library photo
The chairman emeritus of Neiman Marcus was hospitalized Sunday and died with family members at his side, a spokeswoman for Stanley Marcus Consultancy said.
Stanley Marcus had standard "for quality and dignity."
Marcus long had been hailed as the last bastion of the day of the Merchant Prince. His philosophy was simple: "I do believe the best is discernible to the observant eye."
Walter Loeb, publisher of the Loeb Retail Letter, said Marcus created a standard "for quality and dignity" that still exists for Neiman Marcus shoppers who expect the highest level of service and couture.
"He had such an eye for fashion," Loeb said. "Today we've lost an icon and patriarch in the business."
Marcus' father, aunt and uncle founded Neiman Marcus in 1907 in downtown Dallas. Marcus graduated from Harvard University in 1925 and received his master's degree in business administration from Harvard's business school a year later.
In 1926, at age 21, Marcus took over as the company's secretary, treasurer and director. Eventually, he retired from the company in 1975 with the title chairman emeritus.
Early Neiman Marcus customers included cowboys, Indians and women from rural outposts in Texas where the land had yielded oil.
In the 1920s, the store was the first to offer personalized gift wrapping for customers and created the first weekly retail fashion show in the country. In 1960, it also started a Christmas tradition of exotic his and her gifts, which continues today. The catalog first began in 1915.
Neiman Marcus was the first retail apparel store outside New York to advertise in national fashion magazines. Vogue magazine in 1953 described the store as "Texas with a French accent."
The company's "his and her" category debuted in 1960s with a pair of Beechcraft airplanes. Over the years, the store touted pairs of submarines, camels, Egyptian mummy cases and Spangled Cats.
Today, Neiman Marcus has 32 stores nationwide, from Honolulu to Beverly Hills, Calif., to Boston.
Marcus was founder-trustee of the Stanley and Linda Marcus Foundation, which benefits endeavors of art and culture. In 1974, he wrote the best seller "Minding the Store: A Memoir."
