Blach's

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Blach's logo.jpg

Blach's was a family owned department store chain. The oldest store was located on the northwest corner of 3rd Avenue North and 20th Street in downtown Birmingham. The logo Blach's used was the image of a calla lily and a layman's square which stood for the store's motto: Blach's treats you fair and square.

Blach's was originally founded in 1885 by Julius Blach, a German immigrant. In 1935 the former Bencor Hotel building was completely remodeled in a modernist style by Warren, Knight and Davis for Blach's department store. The arched windows were squared off, the cornice and window trim were stripped away and the brickwork was stuccoed over and painted off-white. The store moved into its new location in 1936 and remained there until closing.

During the 1945 printers' strike, which stopped the publication of all three of Birmingham's daily newspapers, WAPI-AM posted news stories in two of Blach's windows, organized by various categories. The resulting crowds, according to Time magazine, "all but blocked traffic past the store."

Blach's in 1943, courtesy BPL Archives.

By the late 1970s, Blach's had five locations, including the downtown store and ones at Eastwood Mall and Brookwood Village. Eastwood, which opened in February 1967 after an addition was made to the east end of the mall, was the largest location at that time. The Eastwood location also handled merchandise processing for the entire chain.

In January 1987, Blach's filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. At the time, the store had $1.85 in liabilities against $1.3 million in inventory and $1.26 million in accounts receivable. The store's reorganization was unsuccessful and its closing was announced in December of that year.

References

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