Montgomery Ward

Montgomery Ward Inc.

Montgomery Ward Company Complex, former headquarters in Chicago
Company type	Original incarnation: Private; mail order and department store Current incarnation: Online retailer and catalog merchant
Industry	Retail
Founded	1872–2001: As mail order company and later department store 2004 (20 years ago) (2004): As current online retailer
Defunct	June 2001; 23 years ago (2001-06) (original company)
Fate	Bankruptcy in 2000; full liquidation in 2001; namesake retailer launched in 2004 after purchase of trademarks
Headquarters	Original company: Chicago, Illinois, United States Namesake company: Monroe, Wisconsin, United States
Key people	Original company: 1872 founder, Aaron Montgomery Ward Namesake company: John Baumann, president of parent company Colony Brands
Products	Clothing, footwear, bedding, furniture, jewelry, beauty products, appliances, housewares, tools, and electronics
Brands	Riverside Airline Powr-Kraft
Parent	Original company: Mobil (1974–1997) Management (1997–2001) Namesake company: Colony Brands
Divisions	Electric Avenue Wards Kids Montgomery Ward Catalog Montgomery Wards Auto Express
Website	www.wards.com

Montgomery Ward is the name of two successive U.S. retail corporations. The original Montgomery Ward & Co. was a mail-order business and later a department store chain that operated between 1872 and 2001. The current Montgomery Ward Inc. is an online shopping and mail-order catalog retailer that started several years after the original Montgomery Ward shut down.