Early mail order companies
Sears, Roebuck & Company was one of the early mail order companies in the United States and was famous for its catalogues. The first relatively small one was published in 1888 and in 1895 the general catalogue was produced with a total of 532 pages.
Sears, Roebuck & Company was not any one of the mail order companies. It offered anything from cars and clothes to toys and gifts. Its key catalogue became known as The Consumers’ Bible. Originally Sears Roebuck & Company sold exclusively via the catalogue and in doing so launched certain products onto the world and into the English language.
First time appearance of words in the Sears Roebuck catalogues
Words which made their first appearance in the 1897 catalogue were turtleneck, bow tie, celery salt, cuff-links, film camera, golf cap, mud-proof, nutria (as a colour) and window display. Just to illustrate that the company was still innovative, jumper, sweet dreams and spice jar turned up in 1908 and Magic Markers in 1951, while Sears introduced hairy spray and wash-and-wear to the world and the language in 1959.
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