Kroch's and Brentano's

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Kroch’s and Brentano’s was a Chicago bookselling institution whose roots stretched back to 1907, when Austrian immigrant Adolph Kroch opened a German-language bookstore on Monroe Street. The business eventually shifted to English-language books, expanded downtown, and grew into one of the city’s best-known names for readers, collectors, and anyone who could happily disappear into a bookstore for a few hours.

The Brentano’s side of the story went back even further. Brentano’s had opened a Chicago branch in 1884, and Kroch acquired that operation during Brentano’s 1933 bankruptcy. For years he ran Kroch’s and Brentano’s separately before combining them in the 1950s into Kroch’s and Brentano’s. Its flagship at 29 South Wabash Avenue was promoted as the “World’s Largest Bookstore,” with roughly 40,000 square feet of books and departments staffed by employees famous for actually knowing what they were selling. Wikipedia

At its peak, Kroch’s and Brentano’s operated 22 stores around the Chicago area. But by the 1990s, competition from discount chains and larger national booksellers put increasing pressure on the company. After store closures, ownership changes, and a bankruptcy filing, the remaining locations closed on July 31, 1995.

Nearly nine decades of bookselling, author signings, obscure-title hunting, and knowledgeable clerks — eventually reaching the final chapter.

Our Kroch’s and Brentano’s collection celebrates the classic Chicago bookstore name, its legendary Wabash Avenue flagship, and a time when finding a good book meant wandering through shelves instead of scrolling through search results.