Waldenbooks Ceramic Coffee Mug
11oz
$12.99
Sale price
$12.99
Regular price
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Start the day with a nod to Waldenbooks and the bookstores that shaped everyday reading culture. Founded in Bridgeport in 1933 as a rental library, the company moved into retail as affordable paperbacks grew popular, opened its first bookstore in Pittsburgh, and expanded into malls nationwide. From Kmart ownership to the Borders-Walden Group and final store closures in 2011, its history makes this mug especially appealing to readers and retail nostalgists.
Walden Book Company began on March 4, 1933, when Lawrence Hoyt, a former Simon & Schuster sales manager, and Melvin T. Kafka opened a rental library inside a department store in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Named after Henry David Thoreau’s Walden, the business rented books for three cents per day during the Great Depression. By 1948, it had 250 rental locations. Lawrence Hoyt opened the first Walden bookstore in Pittsburgh in 1962, as affordable paperbacks helped shift the company from rentals to retail selling. Broadway Hale Stores acquired the company in 1969 and later became Carter Hawley Hale. During the 1970s, Walden Books gradually became Waldenbooks. Kmart acquired Waldenbooks in 1984. The company expanded into software, educational toys, larger book formats, and related brands, acquired U.S. Coles Book Stores locations in 1987, and operated Basset Book Shop stores before they became Borders locations. In 1994, Kmart combined Waldenbooks, Brentano’s, and Borders into the Borders-Walden Group. Many stores became Borders Express locations beginning in 2004. Borders Group entered liquidation in 2011, closing the remaining Waldenbooks stores.
Waldenbooks Ceramic Coffee Mug
$12.99
Sale price
$12.99
Regular price
Start the day with a nod to Waldenbooks and the bookstores that shaped everyday reading culture. Founded in Bridgeport in 1933 as a rental library, the company moved into retail as affordable paperbacks grew popular, opened its first bookstore in Pittsburgh, and expanded into malls nationwide. From Kmart ownership to the Borders-Walden Group and final store closures in 2011, its history makes this mug especially appealing to readers and retail nostalgists.
Walden Book Company began on March 4, 1933, when Lawrence Hoyt, a former Simon & Schuster sales manager, and Melvin T. Kafka opened a rental library inside a department store in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Named after Henry David Thoreau’s Walden, the business rented books for three cents per day during the Great Depression. By 1948, it had 250 rental locations. Lawrence Hoyt opened the first Walden bookstore in Pittsburgh in 1962, as affordable paperbacks helped shift the company from rentals to retail selling. Broadway Hale Stores acquired the company in 1969 and later became Carter Hawley Hale. During the 1970s, Walden Books gradually became Waldenbooks. Kmart acquired Waldenbooks in 1984. The company expanded into software, educational toys, larger book formats, and related brands, acquired U.S. Coles Book Stores locations in 1987, and operated Basset Book Shop stores before they became Borders locations. In 1994, Kmart combined Waldenbooks, Brentano’s, and Borders into the Borders-Walden Group. Many stores became Borders Express locations beginning in 2004. Borders Group entered liquidation in 2011, closing the remaining Waldenbooks stores.
| 11oz | 15oz | |
| Height, in | 3.74 | 4.61 |
| Diameter, in | 3.15 | 3.43 |
Product features
- Microwave-safe for quick reheats
- Dishwasher-safe for easy cleanup
- Available in 11oz and 15oz sizes
- Glossy white ceramic with vibrant, long-lasting print
- Lead- and BPA-free, comfortable C-handle
Care instructions
- Clean in dishwasher or wash by hand with warm water and dish soap
EU representative: HONSON VENTURES LIMITED, gpsr@honsonventures.com, 3, Gnaftis House flat 102, Limassol, Mesa Geitonia, 4003, CY
Product information: Generic brand, 2 year warranty in EU and Northern Ireland as per Directive 1999/44/EC
Care instructions: Clean in dishwasher or wash by hand with warm water and dish soap