Nope, anyone could walk in and buy. I think they had a registration form to fill out, but no cost to do so.

Yep, Medco was the one I was remembering. I think they folded and the building became available when SM decided to move from May Avenue. I don't think that building is still there; as I recall it was about where the City Bites site (now closed) is located, but the current building is much smaller than I remember Medco being.

First it was Medco then it was Service Merchandise, we lived in the area
behind it. Didn't Service Merchandise have a membership?

Nope. Many of the Service Merchandise locations were previously occupied by a store called "Trade Mart," and I think for a brief time, "Shopper's Club" or "Shoppers Choice" that may have been a membership-based store.

Nope, anyone could walk in and buy. I think they had a registration form to fill out, but no cost to do so.

Yep, Medco was the one I was remembering. I think they folded and the building became available when SM decided to move from May Avenue. I don't think that building is still there; as I recall it was about where the City Bites site (now closed) is located, but the current building is much smaller than I remember Medco being.

The old Medco / SM building is still there.

It took the entirety of the Springbrook building that runs north and south.

The old Medco / SM building is still there.

It took the entirety of the Springbrook building that runs north and south.
The old Local Federal building has been torn down. It was in the
parking lot.

as I recall it was about where the City Bites site (now closed) is located,
but the current building is much smaller than I remember Medco being.
The Service Merchandise building was on Springbrook. City Bites was on
Brookside.

I thought that Medco and SM were both open for awhile, Medco at Springbrook and SM on May. Medco closed years before SM moved to the old Cinema 70 location when it was redeveloped. What was the name of the home improvement store where Hemisphere's is located? A friend of mine's father had the masonry contract on that center and he laid a ton of block/brick out there. That experience led him to get out of contracting for awhile.

What was the name of the home improvement store where Hemisphere's is located?

was it a builders square? -M

No, it was something like "Mr. Handyman". It definitely wasn't a Builder's Square. Maybe somebody will correct me on the exact name. I shopped in there quite a few times. It was a hardware/do it yourself type store.
C. T.
was it a builders square? -M

Handy Dan perhaps?

Check that...

Research tells me that Service Merchandise moved directly from 5901 N. May to the new location in Marketplace Shopping Center (the center east of McArthur on the site of the old Cinema 70) in April of 1985.

The new SM was 50,000 square feet. The other main tenant was Mr. How (home improvement) at 70,000 s.f.

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/servicemerchandise.jpg

Pete,
Thanks, Mr. How is it. I did a quick search and found a connection. It appears that Mr. How was owned by Service Merchandise. At least that was the case when Handy Andy bought the Mr. Hows from SM in the Chicago area in 1986.
C. T.

ah... mr. how. haven't heard that name in forever. -M

Mr. How didn't last long at that location or I believe, in general.

I had forgotten about it too and I lived less than a mile from that store.

Builder's Square was on the NW corner of NW 36 and May, where the indoor go-kart track is now located. Mr. Handyman was at NW 63 and May, in the building later occupied by Birmingham Coat Factory and then Big Lots!

I can't remember the name of the one where Hemispheres is now, though...

Check that...

Research tells me that Service Merchandise moved directly from 5901 N. May to the new location in Marketplace Shopping Center (the center east of McArthur on the site of the old Cinema 70) in April of 1985.

The new SM was 50,000 square feet. The other main tenant was Mr. How (home improvement) at 70,000 s.f.

Mr How, I never would have remembered that. I went in there a few times too.

Check that...

Research tells me that Service Merchandise moved directly from 5901 N.
May to the new location in Marketplace Shopping Center (the center east
of McArthur on the site of the old Cinema 70) in April of 1985.
That's odd. I lived on the street behind Service Merchandise when it
was on N.W. Expressway and Springbrook Drive. Did they have two
stores and consolidate them? Was it an outlet? I can't find anything in
the OK archives.

Mr. How didn't last long at that location or I believe, in general.

I had forgotten about it too and I lived less than a mile from that store.

It wasn't there long. Hearing the name has brought back memories. Accurate memories or not I don't know but this is what I remember. Wasn't Mr How only open a few months when the roof partially collapsed during a heavy rain? Then they only reopened long enough to have a going out of business sale and then the building sat empty for some time?

That's odd. I lived on the street behind Service Merchandise when it
was on N.W. Expressway and Springbrook Drive. Did they have two
stores and consolidate them? Was it an outlet? I can't find anything in
the OK archives.

I think you are confusing Medco -- which was very similar -- with Service Merchandise.

Medco opened in Springbrook in October of 1972:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/medco102772.jpg

And closed in May of 1979:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/medco52479.jpg


Mills Thomson furniture opened in October of 1979:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/millsthomson10679.jpg

And closed in July of 1983:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/millsthomson7283.jpg


Later in the 80's, that space was subdivided for Tony Via Roma and others; in the 90's the Tony's space became Der Dutchman.

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/tonysviaroma11389.jpg

SS, I think it was open longer than a few months, but it definitely sat empty for years. I worked in the Hertz building right next door, and shopped there, but not sure how long they stayed in business. I had forgotten about the roof problem and I think that was the beginning of the end. It was one of those casualties that happen when the parent company has problems. Our Mr. How was pretty busy but I believe they closed when Service Merchandise filed for bankruptcy.
C. T.
It wasn't there long. Hearing the name has brought back memories. Accurate memories or not I don't know but this is what I remember. Wasn't Mr How only open a few months when the roof partially collapsed during a heavy rain? Then they only reopened long enough to have a going out of business sale and then the building sat empty for some time?

Actually that was the Cinema 70 Drive in.18221 Image (c) Wesley Horton 1983, 2023