Retail Yesterday and Today: A Journey of Untold Stories

Chapter 1

THE BEGINNING

Turn Style was a chain of discount stores, and it was the Chicago-based division to the supermarket chain parent company Jewel. Some Midwestern Turn Style stores had pharmacies, which was very uncommon for discount stores in the 1960s or the ’70s. During Turn Style’s peak, the chain composed of more than fifty stores throughout Chicago suburbs; Boston; Downstate Illinois; Moline; Davenport, Iowa; Indiana; and Michigan. Turn Style’s futuristic expansion strategy was to incorporate a hypermarket-type store within four walls. Turn Style’s ideals at that time were considered by many to be unrealistic. Many companies were very reluctant to even consider venturing in the hypermarket concept. Turn Style found it to be a drain on their profits.

A hypermarket store is a superstore combining a supermarket and a department store. The result is an expansive retail facility carrying a wide range of products under one roof, including full groceries and general merchandise. In theory, a hypermarket allows customers to satisfy all their routine shopping in one trip. Today most executives will consider this venture a success.

In 1974, Turn Style opened a new store in Schaumburg, Illinois; it was an up-and-coming town that was young and educated and had the potential to be a tremendous asset for the company. This was my first assignment in retail as a department manager in charge of the girls’ and infants’ department. This was the beginning of my retail career with a major retailer in the market. I was very excited but somewhat guarded and, yes, possibly naive about what would happen inside a retail store’s four walls, especially for individuals of color. During the mid- or late ’70s, books were not available that specifically addressed the type of problems that Afro-Americans would in encounter as they attempted to navigate through the leadership levels in retail.

Urban Chicago was virtually an untapped market because the business community feared of not being able to generate a profitable return on investment. Chicagoland had a few retailers in the market; Sears, Robert Hall, Goldblatt’s, Woolworth, and Community took a chance. These stores were staples within the city. Most of these stores provided merchandise that identified specifically with urban customers. The prices appeared to meet the modest earning of shoppers living in the city.

The Afro-American community believed that if you wanted better quality merchandise, you had to travel to suburban stores. They believed the merchandise sold in the city was fashionable but poor in quality. This opinion was universal among urban customers in the earlier years. Today that feeling is still prevalent but to a lesser degree.

During my adolescent years, when my parents took me shopping with them, I never paid much attention to individuals in charge. As I got older, my level of awareness elevated. Most stores did not appear to have many Afro-Americans working in positions of authority. I did observe minorities ringing registers, cleaning, and running elevators. When I became a senior in high school, I began to look carefully at the diversity makeup of other businesses, like banks, grocery stores, construction companies, and retail stores, looking for someone who looked like me. I was hard-pressed to find other managers of color working in a leadership position in urban or suburban businesses. This did not mean that managers of color were not in a position because surely they were, but clearly, it was very limited.

The dress code for big-box retailers and department stores required all employees to wear their name badge during working hours. Name badges included first name, last name, and position in the store, which made it easier to identify their level of authority. I asked my family and friends if they were aware of any store that had Afro-Americans in a managerial capacity. It was clear to me that most did not, but they did believe there were potentially some, although most likely very limited in their opinion, and they did not know of any. This did concern me because I was searching for suggestions for my career.

The more I visited retailers, the more my curiosity increased, and my level of interest continued to evolve. I began to wonder if there would be a future for me in retail. I asked my parents a question during dinner. Did they feel that any of the stores that we had shopped in would hire me in a management capacity? Both of my parents responded immediately by sharing their confidence in my ability. They both told me that I could do anything I wanted to do, but it would require a lot of hard work, a few brakes, and timing and that they had no doubt I would be successful. I smiled and said to myself, How great it is to have their support. This conversation helped launch my entrance into the retail industry. Little did I know at that time that, in a matter of years, I would be in a managerial position, which I had once dreamed of as a teenager.

I came home one day to share with my parents several opportunities that I got. One was to play minor league baseball out of state, which could one day lead to a career in the major league. The other opportunity was to accept a department manager position with Turn Style. The decision to play baseball was a risk, in their opinion, with many downsides, and the department manager position had less. After a long conversation, it was clear to my parents what the right decision should be. My parents had been instrumental in my life, and I cherished their advice. After much discussion with family and friends, I made the decision to accept the challenge of entering the workforce in my younger years to see if retail was a good career choice.

I was not sure if it was the best decision at that time because I had serious interest in both. I was very good in one and untested in the other. To this day, I continue to ask myself the question, if I had accepted the opportunity to play minor league baseball, were the odds in my favor to play in the major league with the right support? That question would never be answered.

My first day on the job was met with tremendous excitement and enthusiasm. I suddenly came face-to-face with a tough challenge that had nothing to do with my ability. The store management team and employees were 100 percent white, and I was the first manager of color to work at this location, and many employees appeared to be uncomfortable relating to someone of color.

My most tenured employee constantly challenged my direction and covertly undermined my authority, which became disruptive to the business and was having a negative impact on the functionality of the department. I was acutely aware that this problem had to be resolved quickly if my career was to prosper. I was very concerned that my limited experience did not provide me with the right tools necessary to properly assess and resolve race relations problems, nor did I have unlimited resource to seek out advice. I felt it was inevitable that, at some point in my career, diversity problems would surface again, and I had to be better prepared in how to address them.

Most discount stores did not have a human resource department on site in the early years; consequently, all employee concerns were handled by the store managers or assistant managers. I was afraid to share my concerns with leaders for fear of bringing about tension in the store and presenting problems that could be uncomfortable for me and the team. I believed that if the problem was handled poorly, unhealthy employee relationships would jeopardize my career and affect future hiring decisions for people of color.

During my first four months as the manager of the girls’, boys’, and infants’ department, I became somewhat disenchanted because I was not able to make the type of impact that I had expected of myself. Diversity inclusion was a challenge in the earlier years, and some businesses were slow to realize the impact it was having on the industry.

I quickly realized that if I wanted to be a successful department manager and my department to flourish, employees and the leadership team had to be supportive. I wanted the senior management to help shape my career and to accept me as an integral part of their business and not an obstacle because of race. My immediate goal was to find ways to reach my direct reports first and to gain the confidence of the assistant manager second. I felt it was very important to show others that I had the talent required to effectively perform, and hopefully, it would begin to help tear down a stereotypical ideology.

Isolation is a very uncomfortable position for any manager to be in, and if you are new and a minority, the challenge is greater. The mentor-mentee relationship becomes an important part of any manager’s development.

The lack of support from some disrupted my confidence, led to unnecessary mental stress and a feeling of failure, and made me feel less valued on occasion. This type of behavior potentially forced me to question if I belonged. It did cross my mind to resign, but I did not want to give up that easily. It was also very important not to overreact to behavior and provide management with a reason to take corrective action against me. No one in this store ever did anything to me physically, but mentally, their lack of engagement with me did have a less-than-positive impact. The limited interaction with me did create an isolation environment. This type of culture initially did not allow me to successfully contribute to the business.

I must state a point that at no time did anyone overtly do or say anything that was ever offensive. It appeared to me that there were signs that covert actions were being done behind the scenes. I believe some of the problems that surfaced during that time could have been avoided if diversity training was made available to all managers as it is today. Many managers at that time did not appear to have a working knowledge of the diversity policies and procedures in the company, and consequently, onboarding minorities was a challenge. Diversity was not a priority during the twentieth century; therefore many businesses saw a need to drive inclusion.

During the earlier period in my career, I found it difficult to understand why the store manager did not recognize what was happening to me, or did he dismissed it and moved forward? I was never able to obtain an answer to that question at that time.

I believe that if this store had a stronger training program and an inclusive team culture, the team would have been better equipped to identify and resolve problems. This type of education would have fostered an inclusive relationship within the entire store, which potentially could have laid an important foundation for others to follow.

I believe that all store managers should be well prepared with all the essential leadership tools prior to undertaking that position. In the earlier years, employee core base and managerial ranks were not very diverse, and diversity training was not as important as it is today. The problem in the earlier years was that many companies were slow to recognize the need for diversity training, and that appeared to be a fact within the city, in my opinion.

Today most store teams are diverse at all levels, and they are provided with a host of personnel training courses to help leaders correctly identify and resolve problems in a timely manner. This type of personnel integration is an essential leadership fundamental that is core to driving a successful business today.

My immediate supervisor was the soft-lines assistant, and during the first several months in my role, we took breaks and lunch at the same time. On several occasions, my supervisor sat within fifteen feet away from me and never invited me to sit with the team or him during meal periods. This obviously did not feel good, but I was learning how to deal with it.

The soft-lines assistant manager was highly respected by everyone, but when it came to me, I had a different opinion. This manager’s interaction with me was fractured and, in some instances, misguided in my opinion. This leader appeared on the surface to be reluctant to engage with a person of color, and consequently, this individual missed an opportunity to support my development. I felt that his limited interaction with me was having an impact on the business because it was hampering my ability to contribute to overall sales performance. It was my feeling that every manager had to play an integral part to help the business grow. To me, that meant inclusive involvement with the entire team.

During that difficult period, I said to myself that if the day came for me to enter a senior position, I would never let anyone endure what I went through. No one would be left behind on my watch.

I think what hurt the most at that time was being in an entry-level position and being uncomfortable with the condition. Failing was never an option, I was driven to excel, my parents were my biggest supporters, and I did not want to disappoint.

One evening, after work, I was reviewing some paperwork, and one of my parents came into my bedroom and asked how things were going. I said everything was going okay, and he repeated his question by asking, Really, how is it going? At that moment, I opened up and had a candid conversation. We discussed my relationship with the other managers on the team and some of the problems that I was experiencing since my arrival. I told him how depressed and confused I was because every solution that I had come up with was not working.

Suddenly, he placed his hand calmly on my shoulder, closed my bedroom door, and said, Let’s talk about it. I shared with him some of the challenges that were occurring in the store and the roadblocks a person of color had to endure. He shared with me some of his experiences while serving in the U.S. Navy and his employment experience. This conversation was eye-opening.

A family member once told my parent that life experiences did not always appear to be fair, and people of color today may have to endure rougher experiences before change was realized. Society was changing, and I had to learn how to work within the system. He stated that education was part of the answer, but along with that, I had to be willing to work hard, maintain integrity, be a person of good character, and above all be respectful of others. He stressed the importance of hard work and shared ways to build relationships. We talked a lot about working with others regardless of the obstacles that I may be confronted with along the way.

Parents were typically the ultimate optimist when discussing their children, and mine are no different. It was a fact that opportunities had begun to open, and I had to be prepared once they were available.

I believed that outstanding performance was hard to dismiss when results were consistent. A former teacher that I held in high regard once told me that all companies were looking for the best talent, and I would be hired based upon my ability and not the color of my skin. This was difficult for me to relate to during those times, but it was nice to have someone with a different vision supporting you.

My parents wanted me to understand that there would always be individuals inside and outside of the family challenging any optimistic views. It was a fact in my earlier years that many in my circle were pessimistic about the future. They believed I would be better served by taking the more positive approach to the future. Futurist opportunities appeared to be in line with my career plans, and I found it better to look ahead than behind, and I did not want to get wrapped up in things that I could not control or affect.

During a late evening dinner, I was given a suggestion that resonated with me that I believed would help close the communication gap. A large percentage of my earlier life was centered on playing baseball, and it was clear that it was a good way to start a sports conversation with other employees with a similar interest.

I was a sports junkie who loved to watch and play the game. During the earlier part of the twentieth century, baseball was huge throughout America. Sports in Chicago were blanketed by Chicago Cubs, White Sox, Bulls, and Bears. It was almost impossible to live in the city and to be aware how teams were doing, especially if they were in a championship contention. This did appear to be the type of conversation that could work, like what I had overheard.

The following day, I entered the lounge area, and I saw maybe four or five employees standing around the vending machine. I approached them and asked if they saw the great game between the Chicago White Sox and Boston Red Sox last night, and to my surprise, all of the guys chimed in on the results. We went to a nearby table to continue the conversation, and later in the day, during my second break, I saw some of the same employees. They signaled me to come over, and I jumped right into the sports conversation, and that was the beginning of a special relationship with the team. With all the serious problems that I was experiencing regarding diversity and other problems in the city, it took one topic to help tear down the barrier for me, and that was baseball.

I am so grateful that my father recognized that his son was experiencing a problem and on how quickly he could provide me with insightful advice. Parents’ involvement in their children’s personal development would serve them well from adolescence to adulthood. I hope my valuable learning would reach my son and his in the future.

The game of baseball opened doors that I felt was closed, but the mentoring and guidance that I had received from my parents closed the deal. No young girl or boy could underestimate the importance of having a solid foundation in their life.

Over the next several months, I became very close personal friends with many department managers. The willingness of my peers to help me come up with the best ways to improve relationships with my team was now unwavering.

Several managers were aware of some of the difficulties that I was experiencing with one or two of my most tenured employees. My full-timer was looked upon as being one of the most knowledgeable team members in the store, but she projected signs of being uncomfortable taking direction from a person of color. The suggestions that I was receiving from my peers helped me formulate a plan to bridge the gap and improve communication. I knew that if I was going to be successful, I had to find a way to reach my key full-timer. I felt this was going to be very tough, but I had to find a way. The communication with my assistant had improved, but I was still uncomfortable discussing tension with my team with him.

The information that I was receiving from my peers was good, but I was unsure how to deliver change message. The store manager role was viewed in the earlier years as the best outlet to help resolve problems, but during those early days, when it came to diversity, managers in a leadership position had to carefully think through issues before taking a popular or unpopular stand.

During a scheduled meeting with all managers, the store manager informed the store that a corporate trainee would be reporting to the store for a period of six to seven weeks, and he was a student in the master’s program of the University of Chicago. The following Wednesday, all managers were summoned to the meeting room. As I entered the room, there was only one new person inside, and he was Afro-American. I assumed that he was the corporate trainee. Within minutes of everyone taking their seats, the store manager confirmed my assumption. I could not wait to get home to share the news with my parents that a corporate executive of color from the University of Chicago master’s program had reported to the store.

Personally, I was impressed and excited see a person of color in a position of authority. For the first time in my career, I felt that, one day, that could be me. This executive’s short introduction projected him as a strong, intellectual person with a great résumé. He was scheduled to receive his executive MBA degree later that year. In the earlier years, education at that level was significant. Today most senior executives have MBA.

During his introduction, he spoke about the importance of collaborative teamwork, training, working knowledge of the business, and talent. This leader’s message resonated with me; it was inspiring and uplifting. It was clear to everyone in the room that he was going to make a positive impact on the company.

My initial reaction was to reach out to him immediately because he was a person of color, and I believed that maybe this was the connection I was waiting for. I reflected on the conversation I had with my parents and mentors about judging anyone too early without knowing much about their personal characteristics. I decided not to reach out too early. I believed that we both needed some time before we should engage into a serious conversation.

As time went by, there were several questions that I wanted to ask. The first was how he felt about people of color in the industry. The second question was, how many people of color did he know in a senior management position? The third question was, what did race relations look like from his perspective in the retail industry? The questions were important to me but did not necessarily have to be addressed immediately; therefore I made a decision to wait until the opportunity presented itself to engage.

Approximately two to three weeks later, he invited me to lunch. I was excited but cautious on how to react during that time. I met him for lunch without any preconceived notions about anything. The first three questions he asked were to make me feel comfortable, I believed.

1. What type of drive time do you have?

2. What is your favorite food?

3. What is your favorite sports team?

We laughed, and after a few minutes, we engaged into a more serious conversation. He asked the following questions: How are you doing? How much education do you have? Tell me about your family. What type of growth opportunities do you expect from Turn Style?

Many of his questions sounded very familiar to me; it was the type of conversation I had along the way with my parents. No one outside of my immediate family had ever asked those types of questions before. That was the beginning of something special.

Over the next several weeks, this corporate executive gave me a lot of advice and direction how to deal with adversity and how to use my leadership to make things happen. He was a wealth of knowledge with a clear vision for the future, which every new executive needed in order to be successful in the retail environment today. He became my first mentor on the business side and my parents on the personal side.

I could apply his recommendation to a real-life situation to help me connect with a key employee who had previously exhibited some signs of prejudice and unwillingness to engage. Armed with some good ideals, I was finally able to apply key learning to establish a renewed relationship with one of my key team members.

The volume of this store meant that apparel moves had to be made more frequently than lower-volume stores to maintain a strong presentation. Merchandise moves, in my mind, appeared to be visually clear, and I believed that I did not require any additional assistance. This was a gift I believed came naturally, and I never saw the need to ask for help; however, I quickly learned that I was not making my team better. Every merchandising move was made without any collaboration from anyone. I was basically treating my team the same way I was being treated by my immediate supervisor. My vision was narrow in scope, and it took someone with strong leadership attributes to correctly identify leadership flaws and to offer the best advice.

During the spring season of that year, there was an Easter soft-lines layout planned for all my departments, and I planned to involve my most senior team members. I asked my team to help me plan dates, times, and people required to complete presentation moves. I was amazed how receptive the team was to contributing to departmental moves. Once the plan was completed, I told the team that it was one of the best planned transitions that I had ever been involved with. It was a fact that their collaboration and personal involvement made the move seamless, virtually eliminating any rework. The Easter set was amazing, and the pride on their faces told the whole story that we, the team, had contributed to the department’s success.

The store manager came by my department during my conversation with two key employees. He stopped, paused, and said Wow, your department looks great. Nice job.

I responded by saying, Thank you, but this set was completed by an amazing group of employees. He smiled and walked away. This was the beginning of a special relationship with my team; the type of collaboration had developed into a strong, cohesive relationship with my full-timer and the entire team.

From that period, we planned every major/minor event together and collectively celebrated all the department’s success as a team. I realized that my senior team member was exceptional, and I had previously underutilized her talent. She had years of experience and a wealth of merchandise knowledge. This was a key learning for me. I would never repeat the same mistake.

Each month, the store manager held a store meeting recognizing individuals for outstanding sales, service, and other contributions. The district manager wanted his input felt in award decisions. My team won a presentation award during the seven out of fifteen months that I was assigned to that store. The store manager called me up to the front of the room to collect my award. I was obviously excited, and I thanked him and immediately recognized my team for their excellent contribution.

I felt it was important for me to recognize my team in every opportunity I had to show them my appreciation and to articulate the importance of teamwork. During one in-store award meeting, I was asked to come up to receive a sales award. I turned to several of my team members who were present and asked them to come up with me to accept it. They were so excited, and they personally thanked me later for the recognition, but I told the team that my success was based upon their contribution, which should be recognized.

This type of recognition started something special in the store. Other key team members wanted to be recognized in this type of setting, and the store manager made this a staple.

The corporate trainee advice and guidance taught me the importance of collaboration, inclusion, and developing employees under direct supervision. My career was beginning to move rapidly, and the store manager had begun to share his vision for me. The district manager told me that he believed that I needed a bigger challenge and that the timing appeared to be right for me to be moved into a higher-volume store. A little past one year in the position, I was transferred to one of the highest-volume stores in Chicago at that time.

The one employee who gave me the toughest time during my first several months in the role at the end was my biggest supporter, and I would always be thankful for her contribution and wisdom. The impressive fact here was this experience not only changed her but also positively affected how I led my team going forward.

The day my promotion was announced, everyone was excited for me; and although I was very excited about the promotion, it was hard to say good-bye. My senior team member brought me a gift, cried, and thanked me for being a great person to work for. I was surprised about how I reacted after watching her reaction. This was an amazing turnaround from earlier months.

One may ask how I turned such a potentially volatile situation around, and I would say to anyone to always treat people with respect, include your team when making decisions, always be transparent, and thank your team for their contribution. Look for employees who can make you better, and be inclusive.

In 1976, Turn Style expanded very quickly from only a couple of stores in Chicago to thirteen stores. The last Chicago Turn Style store opened in conjunction with the new Jewel concept, the Jewel Grand Bazaar—a one-hundred-thousand-plus-square-foot supermarket format located in the South Side of the city. This format was based upon the European hypermarkets.

This concept was widely credited with marketing the country’s first generic supermarket product line in 1977, which was the company launch strategy of the Grand Bazaar. All three initial Grand Bazaar stores opened in the city: Fifty-Fourth and Pulaski, Eighty-Seventh and Dan Ryan, and Grand and Kostner.

In 1976, I was assigned to open Turn Style’s first intercity store as the department manager of the men’s and boys’ department. This was my third assignment. I had now managed every soft-line department.

This assignment was uniquely different from the other assignments. My travel time decreased significantly. I was driving about forty miles one way during my first assignment, twenty-eight miles one way in my second assignment, and four and a half miles one way in the third. Yeah!

The biggest change from the other location was it was in the urban part of the city and predominantly Afro-American. The other locations were in a suburban community and predominantly white. My new store had an experienced team, which was predominately white except for one Afro-American assistant. This assistant was the only minority in the market at that time. Department managers were predominately Afro-American, except for two Caucasian department managers. For the first time in my career, I was in my comfort zone because I was working with Afro-American managers.

I believed that several of my peers subconsciously were experiencing the same type of problems I had earlier in my career. Managers who feel isolated or uncomfortable with surroundings tended not to make the type of contribution expected.

The first two days in this new store, I saw all the black managers eating together and the white managers eating together. My first reaction was to immediately engage to ensure that they did not experience what I went through earlier. I shared my prior experience with the store manager and assistant managers. I wanted them to clearly understand the uncomfortable signals department managers make without saying a word. I believed that the senior management would be the best to help close the gap if they understood what to look for. This was a new store, and it was important to me that the entire management team had a stronger awareness of diversity, and the more it was discussed, the better things would be.

It was my belief that maybe no one in the store had experienced what I had, and I wanted to share past experiences with anyone willing to listen. My earlier experiences in transitioning in a predominately white store hopefully would lay a seamless transition for others to follow. My prior experience helped me identify and recognize employees who may feel uncomfortable and unwilling to discuss diversity. I could get the management to actively get involved early enough to avoid managers from feeling isolated or uncomfortable in their working environment.

The one Afro-American assistant manager in the market was an up-and-coming superstar in the company. This manager was in line for a store manager position, and he just happened to be assigned to the highest-volume store in the company, located in the heart of Chicago. When I looked at the total number of managers in the company, I was surprised to discover that there were virtually no managers of color in the senior management, field position, or store manager position.

I knew the obstacles for him were immeasurable, and he had a lot of challenges ahead of him if he was to achieve his goal. In some instances, it looked like his goal was unachievable. I did not understand at that time why the company did not have any store managers of color. I always reflected on what others had told me in the past. Change was coming, but it would take time, and Afro-Americans were getting impatient.

I was excited to be part of the management team at this city store, but I was a little bit perplexed over the career opportunities available to me at that time. Not having a mentor close by that I could collaborate with in a timely manner felt like a void was missing in my development. My mentor had moved to the corporate headquarters, and I had lost contact with him, although I knew he was still with the company. I did on occasion seek out the operation manager for advice.

Mentors are very important for managers to have regardless of their position and should not be taken for granted.

The assistant operation manager was working very hard to prove that he was ready to be a store manager, and he never had the time to mentor others, but he was a good source of knowledge. This manager was in line for promotion, and he was deserving; however, not many opportunities appeared to be opening. The company had reduced the number of stores it had planned to open, and no turnover was expected. This meant it would be a long time before he would be offered a store manager position.

I felt that he was ready, but of course, that did not mean much. The company did not appear to be growing, other companies were taking over prime real estate in the market, and I felt Turn Style was slow to react to what I thought were can’t miss locations. I firmly believed that if the company continued reducing new store openings, there would be limited opportunities for advancement in the future for me.

My status with the store was moving in the right direction. I was viewed as a leader with a lot of potential to do more. The store manager, soft-lines assistant manager, and the district manager wanted to take advantage of my apparel capabilities. I was asked to work with buyers to help identify missed merchandise opportunities. This type of exposure helped expand my knowledge and accelerated my career. The company used my feedback to better understand and relate to city and suburban customers.

My first assignment outside of my normal responsibility was very interesting. I was asked to address headwear for all genders for the upcoming fall season. I met a local vendor, Star Headwear, which at that time was the largest hat vendor in the Chicagoland market. I introduced Star to the company. The headwear program was put in six stores, and sales immediately took off. By the end of