When Women Ran Fifth Avenue: Glamour and Power at the Dawn of American Fashion

In the first half of the 20th century, department stores represented a rare space where women possessed agency and influence. With the exception of the executive class, department stores were managed, staffed, and patronized almost exclusively by women. America’s first department store was New York City’s Marble Palace, opened in 1846 by A.T. Steward. Stores like the Palace and nearby Macy’s featured shopping spaces for elite and working-class women, and sold clothing, home goods, animals, and beauty services. Women also worked in these institutions as clerks, accountants, buyers, and copywriters.

Although female executives were rare, Satow’s book centers on three notable women who successfully ran New York City department stores in the 20th century. Hortense Odlum revitalized Bonwit Teller after her husband bought the failing department store during the Great Depression. Dorothy Shaver’s single-minded ambition drove her to rise through the ranks at Lord & Taylor to become the highest-paid female executive in American history. Geraldine Stutz became the first female owner of a major New York department store in 1980, but struggled to keep up with the advent of mall culture. Echoes of the structural challenges faced by these women continue into the modern age of American fashion and business.