Defying the odds, Pottstown store celebrates 150 years

When Abraham Weitzenkorn opened his family clothing store in Pottstown, Abraham Lincoln was president, and stovepipe hats were the new black.

Weitzenkorn, a German immigrant who had peddled his wares from a covered wagon, had saved enough to open a clothing shop, marketing his brand of overalls and work boots to farmers in the area.

Over a century later, Weitzenkorn's family still owns a men's clothing store on a main street of the Montgomery County borough.

Weitzenkorn's, now offering everything from black tie to beachwear, is celebrating its 150th anniversary, still standing after a shifting retail landscape and a decline of Pottstown's manufacturing base squashed other small businesses.

The store's longevity is remarkable, said Steve Bamford, executive director of Pottstown Area Industrial Development Inc., a nonprofit that promotes and facilitates economic growth in the region.

Weitzenkorn's may be the second-oldest independent menswear shop in the United States, behind Levy's of Nashville, which has been run by the same family since 1855.

"A lot of small independents like us have fallen left and right," said Marc Weitzenkorn, 63, who runs the business as president with his brother, Gregg, 60, the company's CEO.

Yet Weitzenkorn's may be observing its anniversary at a time when Pottstown's economy is showing some positive momentum, Bamford said.

Over the years, the family's store on High Street has sold apparel to a loyal customer base, many of whom Marc and Gregg Weitzenkorn know on a first-name basis.

Customer Mike Wentzel of Wernersville, Berks County, has shopped at the store for a decade.

"I like the personal touch," said Wentzel, 69.

But to survive and grow, Weitzenkorn's has had to expand beyond the familiar in customers, clothing styles, and business operations.

The Weitzenkorns have adapted as the dress code for work and church has shifted for many from suit-only to casual, and shopping for clothes has moved from in-store to online.

"These are trends that you can't fight," Gregg Weitzenkorn said. "It just happens."

Gregg and Marc Weitzenkorn and their siblings grew up working in the family store. By then, the business had survived the economic impact of the Depression and two world wars.

When the brothers were young, Pottstown was a thriving borough where area companies such as Bethlehem Steel, Firestone Tire & Rubber Co., and Mrs. Smith's Pie Co. helped make up the town's economic base.

Downtown on High Street was the borough's shopping center, and Weitzenkorn's was an anchor store, said George Wausnock, former president of the Pottstown Historical Society.

But as the big companies left in the 1970s and 1980s, the borough's economic fortunes declined, Wausnock said.

Nearby, retail trends - including the growth of strip malls, indoor malls, box stores, and discount shopping centers - battered small businesses, taking away consumer dollars. Then came the Internet.

High Street shops closed and some storefronts were often unoccupied. Yet Weitzenkorn's remained as High Street's anchor.

Marc and Gregg Weitzenkorn, who began running the business after their father, Arthur, became ill in the late 1970s, had to cope with the challenges.

They expanded the store and diversified merchandise - bringing in clothing lines for customers who are younger, and bigger and taller. Still, it was a struggle, Gregg Weitzenkorn said, and the recession also hit hard.

At one point, Gregg Weitzenkorn thought that his family business might die after his generation.

"I figured I'd work till retirement and then probably sell the store," Gregg Weitzenkorn said.

Then Gregg's son, Aaron, 29, decided to join the family business and bring his digital know-how with him. Aaron Weitzenkorn had been working in finance.

"I started to think I wanted something else, and the store was still there," Aaron Weitzenkorn said.

He put together a proposal to take the family business online and implemented it. That part of Weitzenkorn's now makes up about 30 percent of the family business.

"The future looks much brighter," Gregg Weitzenkorn said.

That positive outlook for the Weiztenkorn business comes at a time when Pottstown's economic fortunes also may be on the upswing.

New restaurants, such as the Milkman Lunch Co. & Cake Shoppe, have opened on High Street, and tech companies, including VideoRay, an underwater robotics firm, have also moved downtown.

The restoration of a 109-year-old carousel and a Civil War-era train route connecting Boyertown and Pottstown along a scenic stretch between the Berks and Montgomery Counties towns also could turn out to be a boon to tourism, Wausnock said.

Aaron Weitzenkorn plans to be around to witness more good times. He says that being the only fifth-generation Weitzenkorn so far to join the family business full-time is not a burden.

"I don't really shy away from the pressure of having something on my shoulders. I kind of like it," Aaron Weitzenkorn said. "It's a [challenge] to keep a business running that's been around so long. But it's something that I welcome."

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