15 Things ’70s Shoppers Remember About Department Stores That Are Gone Today

In the 1970s, a trip to the department store was a full-day outing rather than a quick errand. Shoppers dressed up, rode elevators run by uniformed operators, and lingered over lunch in elegant store tea rooms between floors filled with fashion, furniture, and appliances. Clerks knew regular customers by name, gift wrapping came free, and kids pressed their faces against holiday window displays that drew crowds downtown. Many of those stores carried local names that families trusted for generations. Then suburban malls, discount chains, and online shopping changed everything. Here are 15 department store experiences ’70s shoppers remember that have almost completely disappeared today.

1. Uniformed Elevator Operators on Every Ride

Uniformed elevator operators greeted shoppers at many big downtown department stores. Wearing crisp jackets and sometimes white gloves, they controlled the car with a manual lever, called out each floor, and announced which departments waited behind the doors. The service felt elegant and personal, and operators often doubled as helpful guides who knew exactly where to find gloves, luggage, or the bridal registry desk. Automatic push-button elevators made the job unnecessary, and most stores phased out operators by the end of the decade, though a few historic buildings still keep them as a charming throwback for visitors.

2. Lunch in the Store Tea Room

Elegant tea rooms and restaurants were a highlight of department store shopping trips. Shoppers paused between purchases to enjoy chicken salad, popovers, and finger sandwiches, often while models walked between tables showing off the latest fashions from the store’s racks. Famous spots like the Walnut Room at Marshall Field’s in Chicago became family traditions, especially during the holidays, when reservations filled weeks in advance. Most store restaurants closed as malls added food courts and shoppers grew more rushed, but a handful survive today and attract nostalgic diners who remember the experience from childhood.

3. Putting Items on Layaway

Layaway let shoppers reserve items they could not afford to buy all at once. Customers chose a coat, appliance, or holiday gift, paid a small cash deposit, and the store held the item in a back room while they made regular payments over several weeks or months. The system was popular because it helped families budget without taking on interest charges, and it made big holiday purchases possible for working households. Credit cards and buy now, pay later apps have largely replaced traditional layaway, though some retailers still bring the option back during the holiday season for budget-conscious shoppers.

4. Store Charge Cards and Metal Charge Plates

Store charge cards were a status symbol for loyal department store customers. Earlier shoppers carried small metal charge plates, and by the 1970s most stores issued plastic cards that clerks ran through imprinters before sending the bill home at the end of the month. Owning a charge account at a prestigious store showed financial trust, and many women gained their first independent credit through these accounts after the Equal Credit Opportunity Act passed in 1974. Store cards still exist, but general credit cards and digital wallets have made them far less important, and many old plates are now quirky collectibles.

5. Dazzling Holiday Window Displays

Holiday window displays turned downtown streets into free public entertainment. Store designers spent months building elaborate scenes with animated figures, moving trains, fake snow, and storybook characters that came to life behind giant plate glass windows. Families made special trips just to walk past the windows, and the displays helped draw huge crowds into stores during the most profitable shopping season of the year. As downtown stores closed, the tradition faded in many cities, but famous displays at places like Macy’s and Saks Fifth Avenue in New York still attract crowds of tourists every December.

6. Visiting Santa in Elaborate Toylands

Department store Santas were the main event of the holiday season for ’70s kids. Children waited in long lines through decorated toy departments, often called Toyland or Santaland, before climbing onto Santa’s lap to share their wish lists and pose for a photo. Stores invested heavily in these displays because happy children brought parents who would then shop for gifts throughout the building. Mall Santas carried on the tradition after downtown stores declined, and today many families book timed photo appointments online, though the classic department store version remains a cherished memory for millions.

7. In-Store Portrait Studios

In-store portrait studios gave families an affordable way to get professional photos. Parents scheduled sittings at stores like Sears and JCPenney, dressed children in matching outfits, and posed them in front of painted backdrops while photographers made silly noises to coax out smiles. These studios were popular because they offered low-cost packages of wallet prints and framed portraits, producing the school-style photos that filled family albums and holiday cards. Smartphones and digital cameras made studio portraits less necessary, and both major chains eventually shut down their in-store portrait studios.

8. Record Departments With Listening Stations

Record departments were a major draw inside 1970s department stores. Shoppers flipped through bins of vinyl albums, browsed eight-track tapes, and sometimes sampled music on store turntables or headphones before deciding what to buy. These sections gave many suburban teens easy access to new releases and helped department stores compete with dedicated record shops by offering one-stop shopping for the whole family. Digital downloads and streaming eventually wiped out most physical music sections, though the recent vinyl revival has brought record racks back to some big-box retailers and specialty stores.

9. Warm Nuts From the Candy Counter

Candy and nut counters filled store aisles with an irresistible aroma. Clerks scooped warm roasted cashews, chocolate-covered raisins, and bridge mix into paper bags, weighing each order on a scale and selling it by the quarter pound. The counters were often placed near entrances or escalators so the smell would tempt shoppers to grab a snack, making them a beloved and profitable part of the shopping trip. Most stores eliminated these labor-intensive counters as they cut costs, and prepackaged snacks near checkout lines have replaced the freshly scooped treats that many shoppers still fondly remember.

10. Free Gift Wrapping With Every Purchase

Free gift wrapping was a standard perk at many department stores. Shoppers brought purchases to a dedicated wrapping desk, where trained employees folded crisp paper, tied ribbons, and topped each box with a bow in the store’s signature colors. Stores used the service to build loyalty and advertise their brand, since a box wrapped in recognizable paper signaled that the gift came from a respected local name. Rising labor costs ended the free service at most chains, and today shoppers usually pay extra for wrapping online or turn to gift bags, though some luxury retailers still offer it at no charge.

11. Catalog Order Desks for Pickup

Catalog order desks let shoppers buy items that were not stocked on the sales floor. Customers browsed thick catalogs from Sears, JCPenney, or Montgomery Ward at home, then placed orders by phone or at the store’s catalog counter before returning days later to collect their packages. This system gave families in smaller towns access to a huge selection of clothing, tools, toys, and appliances, much like an early version of online shopping. Montgomery Ward stopped its catalog in 1985 and Sears ended its big book in 1993, but the buy online, pick up in store model works on nearly the same basic idea.

12. Dressing Up to Go Shopping

Dressing up to go shopping was still common at upscale department stores. Many shoppers wore nice dresses, slacks, or blazers, and some older customers still put on hats and gloves for a trip downtown to stores like Gimbels, Hudson’s, or Marshall Field’s. The outfits reflected the idea that a department store visit was a social event, where people might meet friends for lunch, see neighbors, and be greeted by attentive salespeople. Casual dress codes, suburban malls, and online shopping have made this habit nearly extinct, and most shoppers today happily browse in sneakers, leggings, or sweatpants.

13. Pneumatic Tubes Carrying Cash Upstairs

Pneumatic tube systems moved money around some older department stores like magic. Clerks placed cash and sales slips inside a metal or plastic canister, dropped it into a tube, and air pressure shot it to a central cashier’s office, which sent back change and receipts within moments. The system kept large amounts of cash in one secure location and reduced the need for registers at every counter, which made it an efficient solution for massive buildings. Electronic cash registers and card payments made these tubes obsolete, though similar systems still operate today in bank drive-throughs and many hospitals.

14. Beauty Salons Inside the Store

Beauty salons inside department stores offered a full day of pampering under one roof. Customers booked appointments for haircuts, perms, sets, and manicures, then shopped or ate lunch while waiting for their color to process or their hair to dry under the hood dryers. Salons attracted loyal clients who returned weekly, and stores benefited because those customers often bought cosmetics, clothes, and accessories during the same visit. Most stores eventually closed their salons as independent chains and day spas took over, though a few luxury retailers have recently brought beauty services back to attract shoppers.

15. Hometown Chains With Local Names

Local department store chains gave every city its own shopping identity. Shoppers in Washington visited Woodward and Lothrop, Philadelphia families went to Wanamaker’s, and Pittsburgh residents shopped at Kaufmann’s, each with signature buildings, traditions, and loyal multigenerational customers. These stores felt like civic landmarks, sponsoring parades, holiday events, and community causes that made them central to the life of their hometowns. Buyouts during the 1980s and 1990s, followed by the 2005 merger that folded many regional names into Macy’s, erased most of these brands, leaving only fond memories and empty historic buildings.