E. J. KORVETTE DEPARTMENT STORE
—August 17, 1964—
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PARADE of HITS!
E. J. Korvette, the New York based department store chain (with multiple stores scattered throughout six eastern and mid-western states), opened its first two department stores in the Detroit metropolitan area, this month, 57 years ago.
The two store’s grand-opening, locations in Roseville (Gratiot and 12 Mile) and in Southgate, Mi. (Fort and Pennsylvania Rd.) was held on August 15, 1963 (according to The Detroit Free Press).
In the 1960s, the department chain published a weekly ‘Parade of Hits‘ record singles chart (tabulated out of New York). The chart was made available for the retailer’s large in-store record department. The Korvette listing showcased the most popular 40 singles for the week, as was dated, starting every Monday.
By 1974, Detroit had five E. J. Korvette stores on the map. Having expanded to Redford, Southfield and Madison Heights. By that time (and most likely due to retail competitor K-Mart’s growth and dominance in the Detroit market share), the Korvette stores were by then sustaining serious financial and sales decline. By year’s end, 1975, the five stores were no longer in operation in the Detroit area.
Five years later, having declared bankruptcy, the former New York-based department store (having been sold and under new ownership in 1979), officially came to it’s demise on December 24, 1980. What was left of the 17 remaining stores, all were permanently closed.
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(Source: E. J. Korvette; Wikipedia, The Detroit Free Press)
The above E. J. Korvette chart was digitally restored by Motor City Radio Flashbacks
— ACKNOWLEDGEMENT —
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NEW! A special THANK YOU to Ray Tessier, of Allen Park, MI., for recently sharing this rare E. J. Korvette chart with Motor City Radio Flashbacks 🙂
** A MCRFB VIEWING TIP **
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I remember the Korvette’s store in Redford on the Detroit border near the Detroit Diesel plant between I-96 and Plymouth Road. We didn’t really shop there alot since we lived approx. 8 Miles away, but as a toddler, I do remember as a toddler being inside that store when my parents had occasionally shopped there. As for all stores closing up shop, they still had the Redford and other stores open as late as 1979. I know this because my mom or dad had an album copy of Kenny Rodgers The Gambler with a Korvette’s sales price sticker on it! I think the Topps chain was closed by 77.