Two Guys

Infobox Defunct Company
company_name = Two Guys
company_
fate = Liquidation
successor = Vornado Realty Trust
foundation = Harrison, New Jersey, 1946
defunct = 1982
location = Harrison, New Jersey
industry = Retail
key_people = Herbert Hubschman, Co-founder
Sidney Hubschman, Co-founder
products = Clothing, footwear, bedding, furniture, jewelry, beauty products, toys, sporting goods, electronics, housewares, hardware, automotive, appliances, and food.
num_employees =
parent =
subsid =

Two Guys was a discount store primarily operating in the New York metropolitan area and headquartered in northern New Jersey until the early 1980s. It was founded in 1946 in Harrison, New Jersey by brothers Sidney Hubschman and Herbert Hubschman as Two Guys from Harrison. The company originally sold major appliances such as televisions. cite web|title="Vornado Realty Trust"|url=http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/Vornado-Realty-Trust-Company-History.html|accessdate=September 21|accessyear=2006]

History

In 1959, the company acquired [http://www.rcrescent.com/OASutton.htm O.A. Sutton Corp] ., manufacturers of electric fans, air conditioners, and dehumidifiers. The merged company was renamed Vornado, Inc., after O.A. Sutton's Vornado line of appliances. At its peak, there were more than 100 Two Guys locations nationwide, including Upstate New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Illinois, California, and Maryland.

As Vornado's commercial fortunes declined throughout the mid-to-late 1970s, they began selling off Two Guys stores to various companies. In late 1980, Vornado (later renamed to Vornado Realty Trust) was acquired by Interstate Properties, Inc. after Interstate won a proxy fight. Interstate began the process of liquidating its Two Guys outlets, which had posted a loss of $20 million for the first half of 1981.

Many locations originally included a discount store with a supermarket, as well as complete Hardware, Major appliance, and Automotive Service departments. The Two Guys Supermarkets were full sized "stores within a store", and they competed directly with large Supermarket chains like A & P and ShopRite. Trading stamps like Plaid and S&H Green Stamps were popular Supermarket promotions into the early 1980s, and Two Guys Supermarkets had its own private label trading stamps. Completed books of Two Guys trading stamps could then be turned in for merchandise credit slips that could be used in any non-food Two Guys Department. The Supermarkets used the tag line, "Two Guys, The Super, Supermarket", while the main store used the tag line "We Save Money For You, Naturally". The store in East Hanover, New Jersey even had an attached liquor store with bar. It was succeeded by developer Vornado Realty Trust, which developed – and in many cases still owns – the land on which Two Guys stores once stood. In Middletown, New Jersey, a Two Guys on New Jersey Route 35 operated for many years within sight of the "Evil Clown of Middletown"; it later became a Bradlees.

One of the chains more unusual operations was its outlet in downtown Newark, New Jersey. This location was originally the flagship of the Kresge-Newark department store, and for a brief time Chase-Newark. Two Guys operated on 4 floors of this building (later 3), and operated this store more like a traditional department store. Two Guys continued to maintain display windows, revolving doors and other touches of a traditional downtown department store. This location also included an in-store dining room, The Rainbow Cafeteria. This store opened in 1967, and remained until the chains liquidation.

Bernard Marcus, one of the founders of Home Depot, began his retail career when he convinced the Hubschmans to let him operate the cosmetics concession at a Two Guys store in Totowa, New Jersey. He eventually was put in charge of first sporting goods and the major appliance department for the entire company, controlling over $1 billion dollars in sales. He left the company after it was sold to outside investors following Herbert Hubschman's death.

Former Locations

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New Jersey

* Harrison, original store located within the RCA complex, replaced by Kearny store.
* Kearny, flagship location. Main Store, later TSS Seedmans, now the site of a Pathmark supermarket, later Channel Lumber, now Marshalls.
* Atlantic City, later used as Casino Bus Parking, now site of AC municipal depot.
* Audubon.
* Berlin.
* Bordentown, 1/2 later Jefferson Ward, then Bradlees (that 1/2 now empty), the other half now a ShopRite, Fashion Bug and Blockbuster take up only half of the space the once gigantic store held.
* Brick, later Caldor, now Kohl's, as well as ShopRite, and several smaller stores. This location was one of those that had both a department store and a supermarket, as well as a cafeteria-eatery, and a snack stand at one of the entrance/exits. At that time, every inch of that plaza was owned and made use of by Two Guys. Its parking lot was large enough that a bank, a McDonald's, and a small real estate office all exist within it (as of 2008).
* Cherry Hill, became a Jefferson Ward, then Bradlees; now Wal-Mart.
* Cinnaminson, later Jefferson Ward, then Bradlees (briefly), then Sam's Club. The Sam's Club opened in 1989 and was parent company Wal-Mart's very first store in New Jersey and the Northeast. It moved to a new location in the early 2000s.
* Dover (Morris County), half of the store became Jamesway. The adjacent Two Guys furniture store became and is still an R & S Strauss/Strauss Discount Auto Automotive products store. Another 25 % of the main former Two Guys store became several small stores. The remaining 25 % which was about 25,000 square feet became ShopRite Liquors and a lobby for a 75,000 square foot ShopRite which was built behind the former Two Guys store and attached as part of the building. ShopRite still occupies this area. The Jamesway closed in 1995 and that area occupied Ames from 1996 to 2002. That area is still vacant.
* East Brunswick, Route 18 and Tices Lane. The location is now occupied by a Kohl's, Dick's Sporting Goods, Circuit City and TJ Maxx.
* East Hanover, Route 10 (Morris County), the two building complex (the hardware department, originally located further east in a building on Route 10 West - which later housed the auto service department - was in a separate, free-standing building which formed an L with the original building) was divided into several stores, 1/6 of the area being Pathmark another 1/6 being Marshalls and another 1/6 being Lionel Kiddie City. The other building became a Bradlees. This happened in 1983 into 1984. In 1988, Bradlees closed and that area was divided into many smaller stores that have come and gone. Lionel Kiddie City closed at the end of 1992 and became Today's Man Clothing store later in 1993. Pathmark closed in May 2002 and was torn down. In 2003 Dick's Sporting Goods was built in that area and occupies the former Pathmark area today. Marshalls still occupies its respective area. Home Depot occupies part of adjacent warehouses which were once the site of the Two Guys warehouse sales.
* Morris Plains, Morris Mall, formerly FMC, then White Modell. This was a huge L shaped store of 250,000 square feet. 50,000 square feet of this large store became ShopRite. About 75,000 square feet was divided into half a dozen small shops. Another 75,000 square feet became Caldor in 1983 and became Kohl's in 2000 (which it still is). An additional 50,000 square feet was divided into several small additional shops.
* Garfield.
* Garfield, Corporate HQ Building.
* Hackensack, next to Riverside Square, later Bradlees. (now occupied by a Home Depot).
* Hopelawn, later Bradlees, torn down in approximately 2004. Subsequently, a Wal-Mart was built on the site.
* Jersey City, Route 440, later Bradlees.
* Lawnside, Route 30 (White Horse Pike), now Home Depot.
* Lodi, former Modell's, later NWL (National Wholesale Liquidators), destroyed by fire & rebuilt new.
* Manalapan, later Bradlees.
* Marlton, later Jefferson Ward, now Kohl's.
* Middletown, later Bradlees, now Kohl's. (See photo.)
* Neptune City.
* Newark, former Kresge-Newark and Chase-Newark flagship, now mixed use offices.
* North Brunswick, later Caldor.
* Toms River, opened as a W. T. Grant, later Caldor, now Super Foodtown and Kohl's.
* Totowa 200,000 square foot store divided after closing.Crazy Eddie, Bradlees, Oliver's, Fashion Bug, and Child World originally took over the space; Coconuts, Home Depot, Staples, and Marshalls occupy the space now (part of original Two Guys where Bradlees was was demolished and replaced by Home Depot after Bradlees built new building in the parking lot; building now occupied by Bed Bath & Beyond and Buy Buy Baby).
* Union City, later TSS Seedmans, now mixed use center.
* Union Township, later Bradlees and other retail.
* Vineland, Landis Avenue just west of the Circle, later Jamesway and Fashion Bug, and a dollar store in the old automotive building, among other retail.
* Watchung - US Route 22, now a BJ's Wholesale Club.

New York

(additional locations needed)
* Amherst., Sheridan Drive (NY 324) & Niagara Falls Boulevard (US 62)
* Brooklyn, Bay Ridge, later Ceasars Bay Bazzar, now multi tenant reatil.
* Cheektowaga., Walden Ave. @ New York State Thruway (I-90 Exit 52) later Sorrento Cheese, and even later Wegmans & Chase-Pitkin.
* Coram., Pathmark shopping center; Originally a W. T. Grant store, later became Caldor
* Cy|East Setauket|New York, Route 347, now Kohl's and other retail stores.
* Mattydale, Northern Lights Plaza.
* Cy|Massapequa|New York, later Flea Market, now Kohl's.
* Cy|Menands|New York, Broadway, now a tax processing center for Bank of America.
* Cy|New Hyde Park|New York, Hillside Avenue/City Line, was originally a W. T. Grant, then Channel Lumber--and is currently a Stop and Shop Supermarket.
* Cy|Riverhead|New York, later Caldor, now Wal-Mart.
* Cy|Rochester|New York later Burlington Coat Factory. Now Value City Furniture.
* Cy|Schenectady|New York, Lafayette & Liberty Streets (was GE offices now ?), had an Auto Center across street which is now a car dealership.
* Cy|Staten Island|New York, Pergament Shopping Center, Richmond Ave, now Toys R Us.

Connecticut

(additional locations needed)
* Cy|Hamden|Connecticut.
* Cy|New London|Connecticut.
* Cy|Newington|Connecticut, Berlin Turnpike.
* Cy|Waterbury|Connecticut.

California

(additional locations needed):
* Cy|Garden Grove|California Located at Harbor and Chapman. Now a Target Store.
* Cy|Goleta|California Located at Storke Rd. and Hollister Ave. Now a K-Mart Store.
* Huntington Beach California. Located on Brookhurst and Adams, now Target.
* Cy|Long Beach|California Located on Bellflower Blvd. in the Los Altos Shopping Center. Later became a FedMart. Now a Target Store.
* Cy|Torrance|California Located on Sepulveda Blvd. adjacent to the Del Amo Fashion Center. Now a Target Store.
* Manhattan Beach, CA Sepulveda Bl. and Manhattan Beach BL. (Now a Target)
* Cy|Norwalk|California Located on Alondra Blvd near Cerritos College. Now an Indoor Swap Meet.

Maryland

(additional locations needed):
*Cy|Baltimore|Maryland, Belair-Edison Shopping Center; currently Food Depot and other stores.
*Cy|Towson|Maryland, Eudowood Shopping Center (now Towson Place); currently Staples.
*Cy|Dundalk|Maryland, Merritt Blvd. Currently broken into Ollie's and other smaller stores.
*Cy|Glen Burnie|Maryland, Ritchie Highway, partially demolished, was F&M Drugs, now A. C. Moore, Cactus Willie's, and Weis.
*Cy|Hagerstown|Maryland, located on Downsville Pike.

Massachusetts

(additional locations needed):
*Cy|Springfield|Massachusetts, Boston Road.
*Cy|Chicopee|Massachusetts, Memorial Drive (at the now defunct Fairfield Mall).
*Cy|Milford|Massachusetts, Rt 109, currently Kohl's.

Pennsylvania

(additional locations needed):

*Cy|Philadelphia|Pennsylvania - Great Northeast, Red Lion Road at Roosevelt Blvd. A former Zayre's store, now subdivided by a home furniture store and a vacant property.
*Cy|Bensalem|Pennsylvania - Two Guys was located on the Northeast corner of Knights Rd. and Street Rd. (Later, Jefferson Ward, then Bradlees. Part of store was split from Bradlees to become a ShopRite. Demolished and replaced by Kohl's.)
*Cy|Bethlehem|Pennsylvania - Located at 2918-2922 Easton Ave.; later Jamesway; currently Giant Food Stores and Fashion Bug (among other retail stores). The adjacent auto center became a strip mall of sorts.
*Cy|Broomall|Pennsylvania - on Springfield Rd. at merge with West Chester Pike. Became Jefferson Ward, later split into Bradlees, A.C. Moore, and PetSmart in 1988. The Bradlees became a Giant in summer 2002. The store was next to an A&P, later Drug Emporium.
*Cy|Hometown|Pennsylvania Rte. 309.
*Cy|Lancaster|Pennsylvania - Columbia Avenue (Route 462) and Rohrestown Road. After it closed, the store became a Jamesway. It was vacant for over a decade but is now a Lowe's.
*Cy|Levittown|Pennsylvania - Became a Jefferson Ward, then Bradlees; now THE DUMP furniture store.
*Cy|Montrose|Pennsylvania.
*Cy|Reading|Pennsylvania - Located in Shillington at the intersection of 222 (Lancaster Pike) and 724, later Pathmark and A.C. Moore, currently Ollie's Bargain Outlet.
*Cy|Whitehall|Pennsylvania/Cy|Allentown|Pennsylvania - On the (then-) "7th Street Pike" (so-named because it was a few miles beyond the city limits of Allentown, in an area of then-rural Whitehall Township/Lehigh County known as Mickleys), the building still stands at modern-day 2601 Macarthur Road. At first, part of the building became a Jamesway and part a ShopRite. Currently (May 2008), a Giant Food Store flourishes there, among with many other retail stores, including A. C. Moore. A number of years later, the Hess's North Department Store (which had been built just south of the former Two Guys building) was demolished. Then the current Wal-Mart was built onto the existing Two Guys structure, next to a new Sam's Club. The nearby Two Guys auto location became a Sleepy's Mattress Store and has now added on a Panera Bread restaurant.
*Cy|Willow Grove|Pennsylvania/Cy|Willow Grove|Pennsylvania - York Road (PA Route 263), later a Jefferson Ward. This Jefferson Ward was one of very few which did not become Bradlees. There was already a Bradlees in a former Woolco at the nearby Village Mall in Horsham. It instead became a PACE Membership Warehouse (owned by Kmart) in 1988, and in 1993 PACE was sold to Sam's Club (owned by Wal-Mart). The Sam's Club moved south on Route 276 in 2005. Currently vacant.

Notes and references

* [http://www.oldnewark.com/memories/newark/newmantwoguys.htm Two Guys Anecdote]
* [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A0DE4DC173BF931A35757C0A960948260 Sidney Hubschman Obituary] "New York Times" (April 2 1986)
*Hattwick, Richard E. (Vol. 12, Fall 2003). [http://www.anbhf.org/pdf/blank_marcus.pdf Arthur Blank and Bernie Marcus: The Home Depot Story] "Journal of Business Leadership"

External links

* [http://www.oldnewark.com/memories/newark/newmantwoguys.htm/ Old Newark New Jersey]
* [http://pleasantfamilyshopping.blogspot.com/2007/10/tale-of-two-guys.html/ Pleasant Family Shopping]