At 20 year of age F.W. Woolworth found work
in exchange for room and board at a local dry goods store , and after his
employers held a successful clearance sale he saw the possibilities of a
discount store. His key improvements were having the goods on open display
instead of behind the counter , and having prices plainly marked instead of
bargaining.
With borrowed funds he opened his first F.W.
Woolworth store in the suburb of Utica, New York in 1879, but the store closed
the following year . Deciding that his problem had been a poor location. He
opened a new store in downtown Lancaster, Pennsylyania in 1881. Within months
he was opening multiple stores in business partnerships with local
retailers,and within a few years Woolworth was a millionaire. In 1909 he opened
his first store in England, and in 1913 the company opened its new headquarters
in New York’s Woolworth Building—then the tallest building in the world.
Woolworth had a deep fear of dentists ,
allowing his teeth to rot ,and died of a dental(牙齿)lunch counters in many stores , Woolworth was America’s
largest restaurant chain through the 1940s. The company peaked as the world’s
largest department store chain in the late 1970s, with more than 4 . 000
stores. By the late 1990s business was sputtering (喷溅),
and the company closed all of its American department stores,renamed itself
Venator, and sold the Woolworth Building . In 2003 Venator renamed itself after
the company’s most successful division, Foot Locker, Inc . Under separate
ownership , Woolworth stores are still operated in Austria , Germany , Mexico,
South Africa , and the United Kingdom.
1.The first F. W. Woolworth store failed
mainly because .
A.it was located too far away from the city
center
B.it was a new brand for customers
C.its goods are much too expensive
D.it was inconvenient for customers to choose
goods
2.A clearance sale offers customers a good
chance .
A.to make a purchase on cash
B.to buy something in a very low price
C.to bargain with the sellers
D.to pick up what you like for free
3.Which is the right order of events that
happened in this passage?
a.Woolworth became a millionaire
b.first F. W. Woolworth store opened
c.F.W. Woolworth found work at a local dry
goods store
d.The company peaked as the world’s largest department
store chain
e.Woolworth died of a dental infection
A.d-b-c-e-a B.a-c-b-d-e C.c-b-a-e-d D.a-d-e-c-b
4.We know from this passage that
.
A.Woolworth built the tallest building in the
world in 1913.
B.the number of Woolworth reached its peak
before the death of F.W. Woolworth
C.offering free lunch is one of the
characters of Woolworth store store chain
D.Woolworth had no chain stores in America for
about 20 years
5..F.W.Woolworth’s success mainly owes to .
A.his hard working and diligent efforts
B.his gifted talent in selling
C.his new market concept and sales model
D.his rich experience in the dry goods store