Read Online The Filenes RTF
Taking over their father’s downtown Boston clothing store in1890, Edward and Lincoln Filene developed it into the world’s largest if not best known specialty store. In the process, they launched a revolution in retailing and in organizational management. By 1900, their employees had a constitution, drawn up by none other than Louis Brandeis, that guaranteed them fair treatment and the power, by majority vote, to change any store rule, regulation or policy. The Filenes also initiated many innovations in merchandising, including their internationally famous Bargain Basement. During their busy lives, they undertook many public service activities which brought them into frequent contact with numerous prominent Americans such as Theodore and Franklin Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson and Lincoln Steffens. The Filene brothers also gave the nation many valuable institutions including credit unions.
