Edward Filene - Knowledge (XXG)

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calculations, to make plain to us that our modern mechanism of abundance cannot be kept in operation unless the masses of our people are enabled to live abundantly. His democracy was, therefore, more than a tradition. His liberalism was more than a formula. His faith was more than a mere assent to principles which have proved to be tried and true. He did not repudiate the past, after the fashion of some reformers, nor did he repudiate the future after the fashion of those who fear reform. He believed in learning and searching out the ways of human progress.

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unique debt which we and succeeding generations of credit union members owe and will always owe him – we make a part of these our By-laws, not subject at any time to amendment, this acknowledgement – and we create the office of Founder of this Association and name Edward A. Filene to that office for life. Thereafter said office shall be abolished.

272:. William immigrated to the US in 1848 after abandoning law school in Berlin. It was some time in the 1850s that William and Clara met while Clara was visiting relatives in Hartford, Connecticut. They married in New York City. As "a peddler, chiefly of women's apparel" William built up a company composed of several small retail shops. 609:, Filene believed that the problems of mass production had essentially been solved. But he feared that production by itself would not ensure prosperity; if ordinary workers could not afford to continue financing this expansion with their purchasing power, the result would be either reduced production or worse, increased 740:

Roy Bergengren conducted a series of memorial meetings for credit unionists around the country. The Board of Directors of Credit Union National Association and CUNA Mutual Insurance Company voted to raise funds to build a memorial to their founder. Filene House in Madison, Wisconsin was the result.

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was not the first 'bargain basement' in the U.S., the principles of 'automatic mark-downs' generated excitement and proved very profitable. Filene personally supervised construction of the first basement in Boston. An advocate of consumer education, he introduced color matching tools in the clothing

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By 1928 Edward was ousted from store management by his fellow stockholders who were "troubled by his liberal management policies", but retained an office and the title of President. His ouster allowed him to dedicate more time to his passions of travel, civic organizations, and philanthropy. He wrote

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It is not individual persons but the people as a whole who were closest to the heart of this unique personality. Mr. Filene was, however, more than a champion of popular rights. He was a prophet who perceived the true meaning of these changing times. He was an analyst who was able, by mathematical

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His other major concern was mass production. He argued that higher wages and shorter hours for workers would enable them to buy materials they could not otherwise afford. He wrote several books on the subject and proposed that mass production, mass distribution and worker purchasing power were the

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He had a great distaste for material things, lived very modestly, never owned an automobile and was scrupulously careful about small expenditures, all because he felt that he was a trustee for the money that he had earned and that the trustee-ship involved turning his accumulations into the greatest

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Edward Filene was a proponent of the scientific approach to retail management. In 1909, he introduced the "bargain basement" principle. Under this plan, merchandise had to be sold within 30 days or it was marked down; after a further 12 days, the merchandise was further reduced by 25% and if still

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In 1881, when Edward was 21 years old, his father William founded a department store in Boston. Edward began traveling in the 1880s, purchasing merchandise, studying business practices, and increasingly examining how different societies were organized and the problems they faced. Edward had passed

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of America – that he first brought cooperative credit to the United States – that he created in 1921 and financed from 1921 to 1934 the Credit Union National Extension Bureau in order that there might be a sustained development of cooperative credit in our country – in free acknowledgement of the

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and adapted these ideas for use in the retail environment. While Taylor is best known for the use of scientific methods to increase workplace efficiency, he was also interested in how to improve the quality of work for employees. Filene is credited with refining a number of under-utilized and in

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First, Bergengren believed that the Extension Bureau should attempt to secure federal legislation first, rather than work state by state. Filene maintained that a national law should be based on a sound understanding of the diverse circumstances of people across America—from shrimp fishermen in

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Inspired by the experience in many European countries where credit unions were called "people's banks", Filene organized the National Association of Peoples Banks to advance the credit union cause in the US. However, little came of this until 1921, when Filene observed in Roy Bergengren the key

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Filene believed in the intrinsic capability of ordinary people to improve their own condition, given "good information and the discipline to use it effectively." This faith led not only to his involvement with credit unions, but to a wider interest in research into critical social and economic

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sought to stimulate the economy with soft loans targeted to banks, railways and large companies. Filene favoured asking for $ 100 million in reconstruction credits to be pumped into credit unions. Bergengren strongly opposed this position, and his view prevailed this time. "To him, it meant

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In 1921, Filene founded the Extension Bureau, to which he donated nearly $ 1 million during its 14-year history. It had four goals: to bring about the laws needed for credit union development in the various states, subsequently, to organize some credit unions in each state that could serve as

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and was stricken with pneumonia. His assistant, Lillian Schoedler was able to get him the best of care and he did recover. In 1937, however, he made another trip to Europe to attend the International Chamber of Commerce meeting in Paris. He again contracted pneumonia and died in the

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What is needed is that the American masses shall learn the art of constructive self-government in this machine age – in this age in which life is no longer organized on a small community pattern but in which all Americans are more or less dependent upon what all other Americans are

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19??: The winning plans of the European peace awards: offered in Great Britain, France, Italy, and Germany for "The best practical proposals for restoring peace and prosperity in each of those countries thru international co-operation". Rouffé, imp., 180 pages, digitized Sep 15,

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His death was reported on the front page of every major newspaper in the world. A man who thought of himself as a "seller of pins" would have been honored indeed by the tribute paid to him by President Franklin D. Roosevelt when he heard of Filene's death Roosevelt wrote:

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for women, a 40-hour work week, health clinics and paid vacations. He also played an important role in encouraging the Filene Cooperative Association, "perhaps the earliest American company union". Through this channel he engaged constructively with his employees in

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Several writers mention the fact that Filene never married may be why "his family in a very real sense became society as a whole." Filene "played a pivotal role in passing America's first Workmen's Compensation Law in 1911" and was a founder of the Boston,

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destroying the vital principle of the whole movement by converting a community enterprise into an agency of the government. To teach people how to help themselves was more important by far in times of depression than at any other time."

441:, helped organize public hearings on creating credit union legislation in Massachusetts. The Massachusetts Credit Union Act of 1909 was the first comprehensive credit union law in the United States, and would serve as a model for the 325:

when in 1890 his father became seriously ill. Thirty years old at that time, Edward gave up his educational ambitions to take over the family business. One of his great disappointments in his life was being unable to attend Harvard.

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Filene is considered the father of the U.S. credit union movement, which by the end of 2008, with 89 million members, had the largest membership of any country and one of the highest levels of market penetration in the world.

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were critical to the emergence of credit unions in the United States. He also donated $ 1 million to the Consumers Distribution Corporation to help them organize a national network of cooperative retail stores.

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plagued him throughout his life. In 1872, Clara Filene enrolled her three boys in the "Brüsselsche Handels und Erziehungsinstitut", a boarding school known for excellence in instruction and discipline in her

493:, and their collaboration and the work of the Extension Bureau proved very effective, bringing state laws to fruition in 26 states and substantially revised flawed legal frameworks in 5 others. In 1934 the 425:

He realized that credit unions could help ordinary American workers to access loans at reasonable rates. Equally important, workers could save their money so that when hard times hit, they were prepared.

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1936: Religion and Distribution, an Address ...(at the Dinner of the Synod of New York of the Presbyterian Church of the U.S.A., Brooklyn, New York, October 21, 1936). reprint, publisher not identified, 5

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examples to others, to expand the number of credit unions to the point that they could create self-sustaining state federations, and to combine the federations into a self-sustaining national association.

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some cases novel retailing techniques. For example, Filene's Department Store offered complete and honest descriptions of its merchandise and offered to give customers their "money back if not satisfied".

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1934: "Servir, au siècle des machines", Volume 1 of Encyclopédia Pax ... 2. collection: Coopération sociale. 1.ser. Philosophie et pratique Volume 2 of Encyclopédie Pax. Les Éditions internationales, 291

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Louisiana, to factory workers in Massachusetts or farmers in the mid-West. Only by developing many state laws first would such a sound national understanding be possible. He prevailed in this debate.

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1928: "Contributions of Research to Business": An Address Delivered Before the Sixty-ninth Convocation of the University of the State of New York at Albany, Friday, October 19, 1928, 14 pages.

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trends. This research, if clearly explained to the public, would advance the causes of both democracy and peace. These views led him to found the Twentieth Century Fund in 1919, since renamed

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Though the store did not make a profit for many years, it attracted more customers, and eventually turned a profit, even supporting the main store of Filene's during the Great Depression.

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Filene seems to have been responsible, with the collaboration of Pierre Jay, for the adoption of the term "credit union" in the United States. His concern with fighting

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unsold after another 18 days, a further markdown of 25% was applied. If the merchandise remained unsold after two months, it was given to charity. Although

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1925: "More Profits from Merchandising: The Model Stock Plan for Distributors, Producers, and Buyers", An Address Before the Retailers Lucheon,

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in Europe. He gave many speeches on the subject and wrote against the growing anti-Semitism in the United States. To counter the influence of

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and excessively costly consumer loans led to the choice of the word "credit", while his interest in working people made him want to cast

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that organized leaders and committees to take leadership roles in solving key urban problems, including slums, public health, crime and

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Hans Michael Hensel (ed.), John Gatt-Rutter: "In dieser Zeit der rauhesten Prosa." (transl: "In this time of the roughest prose.") −

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Filene's lifestyle and motivation for his philanthropic work was described by Bergengren, who knew him for much of his adult life.

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1927: "The Way Out for the Manufacturer and the Merchant": An Address. published by Marlborough Chamber of Commerce, 18 pages.

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of Manhattan, is named after him. Bronze busts honoring Filene and seven other industry magnates stand outside between the

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Segnitz: Zenos 1996, pp. 75-125. ISBN 3-931018-55-5. − An updated short version of this book chapter is online in English:

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Subsequent to this trip the philanthropy he practiced, combined with the steady implementation efforts of his associate

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192?: "An American View: Prosperous Neighbors Swell the Nation's Pocketbooks", Wm. Filene's Sons Company, 4 pages.

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that had been promoted and funded by the British colonial government. On his return, he contacted his associate

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With the work of the Bureau essentially completed, a national meeting of credit union leaders was called at

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since. Foreshadowing debates that still rage, Filene's and Bergengren's views diverged on two key issues:

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and suggested that a similar type of organization be promoted by the US government in the Philippines.

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organizer he needed. Together with Bergengren he founded the Credit Union National Extension Bureau.

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The first credit union to be named after Filene outside the United States was Filene Credit Union in

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that many in Florida's credit union business attended. In 1966, the decommissioned ship was sunk at

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leading to violence or dictatorship. He saw credit unions as an important part of the answer.

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In 1865, at the age of 5, Edward was injured in a fall that left him with a permanent limp.

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19??: "The War's Influence Upon American Business", publisher not identified, 15 pages.

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on February 9, the ship was launched on April 6 in a christening ceremony sponsored by

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Immigrant Entrepreneurship: German-American Business Biographies, 1720 to the Present

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1934: "Department Store-manufactures's Relationships", Issue 3 of Marketing series,

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founded 1915 in New York after World War I had broken out, and he supported the

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The Way Out: A Forecast of Coming Changes in American Business and Industry.

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Le problème européen et sa solution Bibliothèque politique et economique

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1925: The Way Out. A Business Man Looks at the World, London, 248 pages.

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published by Jonathan Cape Toronto. reissued by Lewis Press 348 pages,

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During the 1930s, Filene was concerned about the growing threat of the

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on the home front. He was appalled by the growing strength of the

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The Extension Bureau has been a model for many projects related to

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Robert Cantwell: An American 1930s Radical Writer and His Apostasy

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In 1907 Filene traveled around the world, and by February reached

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published by the Committee On the Barbara Weinstock Lecture, via

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In grateful recognition of the fact that Edward A. Filene is the

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1934: "A Merchant Surveys the New Deal: Radio Address", 8 pages.

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of Boston, then merged with Webster First Federal Credit Union.

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The Credit Union Movement: Origins & Development, 1850–1980

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An important initiative was the "Boston-1915", a multi-sector,

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department store chain and for his decisive role in pioneering

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