Sage-Allen

Sage-Allen was a former mid-market department store chain based in Hartford, Connecticut. The store was a fixture in southern New England and anchored a number of smaller local and regional shopping centers in Connecticut, Massachusetts and, later, New Hampshire, until it ceased operation in 1994. The store was also known for the free standing 'Sage-Allen' clock, a local landmark, that was located on the Main Street sidewalk in front of the flagship store until the clock was damaged in a windstorm in 1992. The clock was later repaired and erected on another sidewalk in the city. Its importance as a Main Street landmark was known to the re-developers of the Sage-Allen building, and a deal was struck to return the clock to its traditional place. A clock specialist was called upon to restart the clock after its return to Main Street in the summer of 2007.

History

Known for its apparel, home goods, accessories and children's wear, the downtown Hartford flagship store was considered a smaller but respected rival to the larger and dominant G. Fox & Co. store a block away. Sage-Allen participated in the wave of post-World War II suburban expansion much earlier than G.Fox and first opened in a number of smaller village center locales prior to the more modern shopping centers and mall locations it would later occupy.

The company began a slow decline in the mid to late 1980s which was accelerated by the severe economic recession that hit the region in the early 1990s. In a move to bolster the retailer's profitability, a merger was formed with another small regional department store chain, Addis & Dey's, located in Syracuse, New York. In spite of efforts by Sage-Dey, as the merged company was called, to strengthen its economic base, it filed for Chapter 11 in 1992 and ceased operations in 1994.

Former locations, Sage-Allen

Connecticut

*Hartford: Downtown (Freestanding), closed, 9/1990, building partially converted to new residential development 2006
*West Hartford Center (freestanding) closed in the late 1980s
*Farmington: Westfarms, 1974, converted to Filene's Men's & Home store 1994, now Macy's
*Bristol: Bristol Center Mall, 1984, closed 1990, mall to be demolished 2007
*Wethersfield: Silas Deane Highway (Freestanding), 1957
*Manchester: Buckland Hills Mall, 1989, subdivided into Filene's Men's & Home store and mall food court in 1994, Filene's store itself replaced in 2005
*Simsbury: Farmington Valley Mall, 1972
*Stamford: Ridgeway Center, 1986
*Trumbull: Hawley Lane Mall, 1982, converted to Steinbach, converted to Best Buy
*Old Saybrook: Boston Post Road (Freestanding)
*Mansfield: Eastbrook Mall
*Enfield: Enfield Mall (now Enfield Commons) anchor, closed 198?, converted to Bob's
*Vernon: Tri-City Plaza
*Glastonbury: Main Street, was a clearance center
*East Hartford: Main Street
*Windsor: Windsor Shopping Center, Windsor Avenue (Rte. 159), closed December 1990

Massachusetts

*Holyoke: Holyoke Mall at Ingleside
*Leominster: Searstown Mall - later Service Merchandise, now Old Navy and Circuit City

New Hampshire

*Concord: Steeplegate Mall

Former locations, Dey Brothers/Addis Company/Addis & Dey's

New York

*Baldwinsville, New York: Tri County Mall
*Clay, New York: Great Northern Mall - opened 1989, closed 1993, converted to Chappell's in 1993, then Bon-Ton; now vacant
*Cicero, New York: Penn-Can Mall - former Addis Company location
*Dewitt, New York: Shoppingtown Mall - Opened 1962, converted to Kaufmann's in 1993, now Macy's
*Fairmount, New York: Fairmount Fair - Opened 1966, became corporate offices in 1992 after closing of the downtown Syracuse store, now Dick's Sporting Goods
*Fayetteville, New York: Fayetteville Mall
*Niskayuna, New York: Mohawk Mall - Replaced Boston Store in 1990, Closed 1993, later Interstate Department store, then Media Play; closed 2001, demolished for Target
*Syracuse, New York: Downtown - opened 1894, closed 1992, now offices
*Wilton, New York: Wilton Mall - opened 1990, closed 1993, now Bon-Ton