Hope Ann Popular Books
Hope Ann Biography & Facts
Ann & Hope was a Rhode Island–based retailer that pioneered practices now common in modern big box stores. The company was named after the ship Ann and Hope, which was built in 1798 by the firm Brown & Ives, famous merchants of early Providence, RI. The name was given to the ship in honor of Ann, wife of Nicholas Brown Jr., and Hope, wife of Thomas Poynton Ives. They operated from 1953 to 2001 in the Northeastern United States, and they formerly operated a small chain of home fashion outlets, garden outlets, and dollar outlets in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Connecticut. History Early years Ann & Hope was founded by Martin Chase, who was born in 1906 in Kiev, Russian Empire (modern-day Ukraine), and moved with his family to Providence, Rhode Island, at age six. He was the only one of six sons not to work in his father's automobile repair business. Instead, when he was 20, he got a job working at a store called Fintex. After Fintex closed its doors in 1929, Chase worked at Howard's Clothes until 1933. Then he started Chase Clothing, where he undersold other area clothing stores by reducing overhead: for example he did not offer alterations and used inexpensive store fixtures. As World War II approached, the clothing market fell into decline, and Chase began to look for another line of work. In 1946, he purchased the Ann & Hope Mill complex in the village of Lonsdale in Cumberland, Rhode Island. He split the large, empty mill into several small pieces and rented them individually. Some time before December 1953, one of the tenants left the Mill, leaving a large amount of ribbon behind. Rather than dispose of it, the Chases opened the area to the other employees of the Mill and sold the ribbon. Chase then had the idea to reopen a clothing store in the Mill, initially on the third floor. By the following spring, the operation had become large enough that it was relocated to the ground floor. Over time more products were added, and by 1969, Ann & Hope was a $40 million (~$255 million in 2023) per year operation. Legacy Ann & Hope was one of the first self-service department stores, in which customers could look at items without sales personnel, and was also part of the first wave of retail stores in the 1950s to use big basket shopping carts. The original mill location also featured a large parking area, which was not common at the time, as well as a basement level with even more merchandise. A special shopping cart conveyor was operated by staff to move store patrons' items from one floor to the other. Other now-familiar features such as having a central checkout area and a liberal store return policy were also pioneered by Ann & Hope. Ann & Hope also had several features now common to big-box retail facilities. For example, some Ann & Hope stores had full-scale cafeterias. When originally constructed, Ann & Hope stores also had an area that was rented to a sub-tenant, with both in-store and outside entrances, a variation of which is a relatively recent introduction in larger Walmart stores. Many Ann & Hope locations had limited success renting to tenants, and before the chain's closing in 2001, many had been converted to store-run garden shops. Sam Walton, founder of Walmart, visited the Ann & Hope chain in 1961 and got the idea for his store from it, and Harry Cunningham visited Ann & Hope in the process of preparing to launch the first Kmart store. 1989–2007 Following a slow 1989–90 holiday season, the Seekonk, Massachusetts store experienced lay-offs, most notably in the home-wares and rug and blind departments. These layoffs were viewed by some as a portent of the difficulties that the Seekonk store (as well as her sister A&H stores) would experience in a cut-throat regional market throughout the 1990s. All of the Ann & Hope department stores closed in the spring of 2001, except for the two Rhode Island stores: the original location in Cumberland and the store in Warwick. High-value properties that Ann & Hope owned in Massachusetts were sold off. The two locations that remained open were downsized significantly and turned into off-price "outlet stores". In the years following the closing, new Ann & Hope–branded outlet stores, such as the Ann & Hope Curtain & Bath Outlet, were opened. Several of these new Ann & Hope outlet stores occupied space near where Ann & Hope department stores had previously existed. 2007–present As of 2007, the original Cumberland property is home to an Ann & Hope Curtain and Bath Outlet and an outdoor Garden Outlet. In August 2007, the owners of Ann & Hope made public their intention to convert the Cumberland mill store to a "mixed use" development of retail and residential space. The Cumberland mill building is now home to the Bargain City Galleria – a thriving flea market, food court and auction center. As of 2010 Ann & Hope Curtain & Bath is still going strong, opening stores in Vernon and Newington, Connecticut. In April and May 2011, Ann & Hope opened two new stores in Raynham and Weymouth, Massachusetts, buying out two Curtain Factory Outlet retailers. This makes a current total of 11 Ann & Hope Outlet Stores: 2 in Rhode Island, 2 in Connecticut, and 7 in Massachusetts. In May 2013, Ann & Hope continued to grow with its newest Curtain & Bath Outlet location opening in Westborough, Massachusetts. After a brief closure early in Spring 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, several Ann & Hope/Curtain & Bath Outlet Garden Outlets reopened on April 27, 2020. The Curtain & Bath Outlet Facebook page reported: "Our garden outlet locations will be OPEN Starting Monday, April 27th! Open daily 8:30am to 5pm! Fully stocked with annuals, perennials, vegetables, herbs, fertilizer, soils, tools, and so much more! Our Cumberland, Warwick, Seekonk & Millis garden outlet locations will be open. Danvers location will open soon. Curtain & Bath outlets will not be open. Please be safe and practice social distancing while shopping." The reopening of outdoor shopping areas – including garden products and patio – was made possible in part by New England governors partially reopening some businesses to the public during the COVID-19 pandemic. This included Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo's response to constituents who expressed a desire that small garden shops be reopened. Governor Raimondo stated at a press conference on April 18, 2020, "I've heard you. I'm hearing you and I want you to know that I directed [the Department of Business Regulation] to work with [the Department of Environmental Management] to address this issue and figure out a safe way for you all to open your businesses." Interior shopping areas remained temporarily closed as of late April 2020. This step was taken in keeping with statewide policies on social distancing, and the designation of critical and non-critical retailers during the pa.... Discover the Hope Ann popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Hope Ann books.
Best Seller Hope Ann Books of 2024
-
Stitches
Anne LamottThe New York Times bestseller from the author of Dusk, Night, Dawn, Hallelujah Anyway, Bird by Bird, and Almost Everything“Lamott’s …most insightful book yet, Stitches...
-
Village Teacher
Jack SheffieldThe fourth installment of the hilarious RagleyontheForest village school seriesIt's 1980: recession and unemployment have hit Britain, a royal wedding is on the way, and the whole...
-
Dancing with the Enemy
Diane ArmstrongFrom the bestselling author of The Collaborator comes a compelling story of betrayal, collusion, revenge, and redemption set in Germanoccupied Jersey during World War II.June 1940....
-
Broken for Good
Rebecca Rene JonesA daughter's narrative about life with and without her father, whose death plunges her into deep grief but gradually becomes her most compelling reason to hope. Like so many Christ...
-
The Whole Language
Gregory BoyleGregory Boyle, the beloved Jesuit priest and author of the inspirational bestsellers Tattoos on the Heart and Barking to the Choir, returns with a call to witness the transformativ...
-
The Wild Date Palm
Diane ArmstrongFrom a bestselling Australian author comes a gripping novel of espionage, passion and sacrifice set in the Middle East during World War I. Based on an astonishing true story, it as...
-
The Weight of Love
Hilary Fannin'This is heartache for grown ups. The Weight of Love pulls you in and does not let go' ANNE ENRIGHT'Beautiful and painful, exquisitely written, shot through with nostalgia for our ...
-
Sitting at the Feet of Rabbi Jesus
Ann Spangler & Lois TverbergHave you ever wondered what it would be like to journey back to the first century and sit at the feet of Rabbi Jesus as one of his Jewish disciples? Join Ann Spangler and Lois Tver...
-
Where the Heart Is
Glenice CrosslandPreviously published as The Ever Open Door, this is a story told with warmth and humour, about a hard working, downtoearth community in a small Yorkshire town during the Second Wor...
-
A Gentle Answer
Scott SaulsA remarkable vision for how Christians can live with countercultural gentleness in a perpetually angry, attacking, outraged time.Wow! What a great book!" Max LucadoIn a defensive ...
-
Of Literature and Lattes
Katherine ReayReturn to the cozy and delightful town of Winsome, where two people discover the grace of letting go and the joy found in unexpected change.After fleeing her hometown three years e...
-
You Are Free Bible Study Guide
Rebekah LyonsIn this six session video Bible study (DVD/digital video sold separately), Rebekah Lyons explores why we all want to know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, what we were made for. Yet ma...
-
It All Comes Down to This
Therese Anne FowlerA JUNE 2022 INDIE NEXT PICK"A true pageturner." Ann Napolitano, New York Times bestselling author of Hello Beautiful"A smart and lively novel." Jess Walter, #1 New York Times bests...
-
Deadly Devotion
Alysia SofiosEven the most avid true crime fans will be shocked by the story of Marcus Wesson of Fresno, California, the worst massmurderer in the city’s history. But the horrors he inflicted u...
-
The Brushstrokes of Life
Anne NeilsonHere's a secret: God has deposited a gift inside of you. Acclaimed angel artist Anne Neilson wants to help you find yours as she shares her personal story of passion and purpose an...
-
Tattoos on the Heart
Gregory Boyle“Destined to become a classic of both urban reportage and contemporary spirituality” (Los Angeles Times)Tattoos on the Heart is a series of parables about kinship and redemption fr...
-
Whispers of Rest
Bonnie GrayLife is noisy. But what would happen if every day for the next 40 days you soaked in God's love as He intimately whispered words of rest just for you?Whispers of Rest is a 40day ...
-
Overcoming Perfectionism 2nd Edition
Roz Shafran, Sarah Egan & Tracey WadeHow to break the circle of 'never good enough'Striving for something can be a healthy and positive attribute; it's good to aim high. But sometimes whatever we do just isn't good en...
-
A Gathering in Hope
Philip GulleyBestselling author Philip Gulley offers humorous, smalltown storytelling as he follows the foibles and follies of Pastor Sam Gardner. Thanks to an unexpected windfall, Sam Gardner'...
-
Cherished Belonging
Gregory BoyleAt a time when society is more fractured than ever before, beloved Jesuit priest Gregory Boyle invites us to see the world through a new lens of connection and build the loving com...
-
Our Mary Ann
Anna JacobsShe thought the worst was behind her . . . Life is tough in Lancashire in 1905 and especially so for fifteenyearold Mary Ann, who was born out of wedlock. When her new stepfather ...
-
I Hope You Dance
Chas WilliamsThis is a Nashville Number System Chord Chart for individual song chart download. This is one of a series called, The Nashville Number System GigBook by Chas Williams. Song charts ...
-
Misfit Table
Tiffini KilgoreToo often the world speaks words of harm, and too often we believe themand so we live stories God never intended for us. Yet God longs to rewrite and redeem your story.Tiffini Kilg...
-
Everyone Is Still Alive
Cathy RentzenbrinkWHAT HAPPENS AFTER HAPPILY EVER AFTER?'I can't stop thinking about it' Elizabeth Day'A total triumph' Nina Stibbe'Beautiful, moving and so funny and wellobserved' Philippa PerryWhe...
-
Kidstory
Tom AdamsLearn about fifty amazing kids who changed the world in this beautifully illustrated collection of inspiring short biographies sure to empower and motivate in equal measure.You don...
-
One Thousand Gifts 10th Anniversary Edition
Ann VoskampIn this beautiful tenth anniversary edition of her bestselling book, New York Times bestselling author Ann Voskamp invites you to embrace everyday blessings and embark on the trans...
-
Open and Unafraid
W. David O. Taylor"A book you will want to read and read again." Eugene PetersonAfterword by Bono.How can we find a more transparent, resilient, and fearless life of faith? The book of Psalms ...