Loehmann's Dressing Room
I began shopping at the Bronx outlet on Fordham Road when i was still in my teens. The original store (in Brooklyn) was palatial. The clothing was in racks on the main floor requiring you to climb an opera house style staircase to reach the open dressing rooms at the top. Then, suitably attired, you could grandly descend to the admiring eyes of shoppers (and spouses) waiting below.
Anyone who grew up in New York City knew Loehmann’s. It was the be-all and end-all place for women to shop for discounted designer clothing. The founder was an elderly dynamo affectionately known as "old lady Loehmann" who scoured the Garment Center with a wad of cash in her purse in search of unsold goods she could sell to her savvy customers.
It was discount shopping raised to the level of the Paris Opera House. The Bronx store (my go-to place) had a balcony where viewers sat. I remember coming out of the dressing room in a pleated chiffon toga and receiving a proposal of marriage from my date. (later rescinded)
