RICHARD SEARS

ACHIEVEMENTS

• Richard Sears was born December 7, 1863, in Stewartville, Minnesota.
• He was the son of a once fairly prosperous blacksmith who lost his wealth ( approximately $50,000)
• Therefore, Richard Warren Sears was forced to work at an early age
• After learning telegraphy, he was employed at the Minneapolis and Saint Louis Railroad
• Eventually, he became a station agent

ACHIEVEMENTS

• A common scheme of the day was for a wholesaler to ship watches to unsavvy businessmen.
• This was done even though they hadn’t ordered it.
• They would then proceed to offer it for a “discounted” rate.
• When this scam was tried on a man named Edward Stegerson, he flatly refused the shipment.

ACHIEVEMENTS

• The deal: Sears could keep any any amount over $12 that he sold the watches for.
• Needless to say, Sears was successful and sold them to the people using the railroads.
• He easily sold them for $14 a piece
• Specifically, he used his intimate knowledge of railroads and the behavior of the rural population.

ACHIEVEMENTS

• There, he founded R.W. Sears Watch Company
• Catering to rural populations, he pioneered the mail-in catalog
• He sent promotional flyers and brochures to potential clients and was largely successful.
• The ingenuity of this technique can still be felt to this day

ACHIEVEMENTS

• In 1887 he moved to Chicago, where he rebranded the company
• By 1897, the company had branched out to sell several different items
• Retiring early at the age of 44, he passed down the presidency
• The blossoming company was given to Julius Rosenwald, who expanded it
• In 1914 he finally succumbed to Bright's disease.

legacy

• Sears left behind an expanding company in his namesake
• It would later become a multinational corporation that moved on to sell almost anything imaginable
• It was the largest retailer in the United States until 1989.
• Furthermore, Sears popularized an entirely new way to advertise and sell products
• It is now replicated by almost any retailer in the world

SIGNIFICANCE

• Sears' innovative new way to sell goods with the help of the railroad became an instant success
• It demonstrated the potential of the mail-order catalog
• Today, it is an extremely popular way to advertise and sell both goods and services
• His innovation and ingenuity was exemplary of the time period
• It took full advantage of the already advantageous railroads in a new way

BIBLIOGRAPHY

• "Richard Sears." Wikipedia. 11 May 2013. Wikimedia Foundation. 05 Nov. 2013
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• "Richard W. Sears (1863-1914)." Richard W. Sears (1863-1914). 06 Nov. 2013
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