Monument to Aristide Boucicaut outside his house in his home town of Bellême, France (b/w...

Aristide Boucicaut (1810-77) French entrepreneur and founder of the Bon Marché Department Stores in Paris; after 1852, he and later with his wife, Marguerite (1826-87), revolutionised shopping and retailing in France; they developed the first department store ('Grand Magasin') in Paris, by 1877 the largest in the world; the Boucicauts were responsible for introducing the concept of shopping as an enjoyable experience with glamorous interiors; innovations included fixed prices, home delivery, large choice of goods, guarantees allowing exchanges or returns, catalogues, mail order and advertising; they were also responsible for the introduction of concepts of care for employees, including pension and employee shares in the business; behind the monument is the house built for Boucicaut by the architect Louis-Charles Boileau (1837-1914), responsible also for the Bon Marché Stores in Paris; later the house was given to the town of Bellême for charitable purposes and used first as a home for old people and later for orphans; the development of department stores was a major force in democratising consumption and making society more egalitarian by giving women the freedom and ability to shop on their own;