J.W. Mays

J.W. Mays was a chain of department stores in the U.S. state of New York. The store was started in the 1920s by Joe Weinstein, a Russian Jewish immigrant. It catered to the lower-income customer and those looking for bargains. At its height, there were locations throughout downstate New York in Jamaica, Glen Oaks, Brooklyn, Fishkill, Manhattan, Levittown, and Woodmere. At that time the company had about 5,000 employees. By the late 1970's it started losing market share to discount stores. In 1982, the store declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy. In 1987 there were four stores left when the Glen Oaks location was closed. In 1988, rather than close the other locations one by one, it was decided to close the store down and declare Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Now, J.W. Mays is a landlord with varied properties, some of which are in former stores and the surrounding areas.