As recently as 1953, new-car shoppers could avoid dealerships by ordering directly from their Sears catalog or nearest retail outlet. Named after the insurance company that owned the department-store ...

Sears’ slow death, which started in the 1990s with the rise of discount retailers like Walmart and online shopping platforms ...

Beginning in1908, catalog customers could browse among styles and models of homes, then they could order all the materials to build it.