Joseph’s: The Rise and Legacy of a Penn Street Clothing Landmark

This story holds special meaning for me—for Joseph’s was where my mother brought me each year to be outfitted for the new school year at St. Joseph’s School, and throughout the seasons for whatever clothing I needed. In many ways, Joseph’s is woven not only into the history of Reading, but into the memories of countless families like mine.

Long before Joseph’s established itself at 408–410 Penn Street, the two storefronts each had their own distinct commercial histories. Originally separate properties, 408 and 410 Penn evolved independently throughout the late 19th and early 20th centuries before ultimately being unified as the single combined location that Joseph’s would one day occupy.

One of the earliest known occupants of 410 Penn Street was Henry Kessler, a respected Reading jeweler. On May 1, 1866, Kessler announced that he had relocated his jewelry business to No. 410 Penn Street, south side above Fourth, where he offered a fine selection of jewelry along with watch and jewelry repair services. His presence marked the beginning of 410 Penn Street’s importance as a specialty retail address in the city.

Following Kessler’s tenure, the building later became home to Edward’s Temple of Music, a prominent musical retailer known for its extensive stock of pianos and organs. This establishment added a cultural flair to the property, attracting musicians, families, and church leaders looking for quality instruments during a period when in-home and community music-making flourished.

Beginning around 1884, Isaac and Rebecca Barrett opened a candy-making and confectionery business at the location. For roughly 30 years, the Barretts delighted downtown shoppers with handmade sweets and treats, making 410 Penn Street a beloved stop for families and children. The confectionery remained in operation until approximately 1914, becoming one of the most enduring and beloved occupants of the building before Joseph’s era.

Isaac Barrett Confectioner

While various merchants occupied 410 Penn, the adjacent 408 Penn Street was long associated with Henry A. Hoff, an established Reading businessman. Hoff ran a dry goods and carpet store at 408 Penn for about 40 years, helping anchor the south side of Penn Street as the district evolved from residential to commercial.

Hoff spent years attempting to acquire the neighboring 410 Penn property, originally owned by ironmaster J.V.R. Hunter. His persistence paid off: Hoff ultimately gained control of both 408 and 410 Penn Street, laying the structural foundation for future unified commercial use—most notably, the later expansion of Joseph’s.

On October 17, 1891, architect L.H. Focht completed plans for a modern new business building commissioned by Hoff to replace the earlier structure at 410 Penn Street, then still associated with Barrett’s confectionery.

Focht’s design envisioned:

• 22½-foot frontage

• 230-foot depth

• Four stories in the front

• Three stories in the rear

This substantial construction investment would create the commercial space that Joseph’s eventually expanded into.

On May 9, 1911, Henry A. Hoff passed away at age 82. His decades of business activity—including his long tenure at 408 Penn and his redevelopment of 410 Penn—would prove instrumental to the later success of Joseph’s, which would ultimately occupy both addresses, using the combined frontage and depth of the properties to support its growing operations.

In 1920, seasoned merchant Mendel Joseph brought his experience from Bethlehem to Reading. By June 1921, he opened Joseph’s Economy Store at 406 Penn Street, specializing in affordable men’s and boys’ clothing, shoes, hats, and especially workwear. His philosophy was simple:

Big volume, fair prices, and service for working families.

Joseph hired John W. Gray to manage the new shop and used creative advertising—including a 10-foot stilt-walker parading around Penn Square—to draw crowds and launch the store with excitement.

Joseph’s Economy Store

Demand for Joseph’s low prices and dependable goods grew quickly. Within months, the store expanded, rearranging departments and creating new fitting rooms and offices.

By 1923–1924, Mendel Joseph invested heavily in renovations—interrupted by a damaging fire in October 1923 that required visiting firemen to help extinguish. Yet within months, the store reopened with a beautifully remodeled cherry-finished interior and an expanded clothing department.

In 1926, Joseph purchased the entire stock and fixtures of the Zable Clothing Company next door at 410 Penn Street. By September, after extensive remodeling, Joseph’s opened a second (and soon primary) Penn Street location, offering high-quality men’s clothing brands like Style & Merit, G.G.G., and Charlap.

By October, the original 406 store closed, and Joseph consolidated into a larger, more modern storefront.

Founder Mendel Joseph passed away in 1934, leaving behind ten children who continued the operation and kept Joseph’s firmly rooted in the fabric of downtown Reading.

By 1937, the store expanded again—now occupying 408 and 410 Penn Street—with eight departments serving men, young men, boys, and working men.

Seen above are: Reading Cut Rate drug store, 414 Penn; Joseph’s men’s store, 408-410; Thomas Restaurant, 402; Quality Clothing Co., 400 Penn; on the second floor — above the corner — is G. Harel Gundry’s dance studio.

These decades marked the high point of Penn Street as the “shopping mecca of Berks County.” Joseph’s found its unique place in this ecosystem, alongside Whitner’s, Pomeroy’s, Shaffer Furniture, Kinney Shoes, and more.

These memories, shared by so many, reveal why Joseph’s loomed so large in Reading’s culture. Beyond racks of clothing, it was part of the rhythm of family life.

In 1977, the Joseph family sold the business to Daniel Mandich, his wife Renee, and Renee’s father Sidney Barrer. Mandich expanded Joseph’s into a regional chain with stores at:

• Reading, 410 Penn Street

• Berkshire Mall

• York

• Camp Hill

• Lehigh Valley Mall (Allentown)

• Palmer Park Mall (Easton)

• Phillipsburg Mall (NJ)

• Steamtown Mall (Scranton)

In 1993, Joseph’s opened a new store in the Berkshire Mall and repositioned its downtown location to focus on big-and-tall menswear.

But Penn Street was no longer the thriving hub it once was. As malls, factory outlets, and big-box retailers expanded, downtown stores struggled.

In 1995, Joseph’s closed its historic Penn Street store, ending more than 70 years at that iconic location. The Berkshire Mall store continued until December 1996, when the entire Joseph’s chain closed due to:

• Intense competition from outlet centers

• Market flooding from bankrupt suit manufacturers

• Suppliers shifting to Walmart and other big-box chains

• A shrinking downtown customer base

Mandich expressed what many retailers felt:

“The competition got to be mind-boggling. How do you compete with that?”

Joseph’s survives today not only in newspaper archives but in the memories of thousands who grew up in Berks County. It was a store where families shopped together, where school years began, and where the clerks often knew your name and size before you even stepped into the fitting room.

Its slogan—“the men’s store where women like to shop”—speaks to its wide appeal. Its specialty clothing for stocky boys speaks to its understanding of local families. Its longevity, from the 1920s to the 1990s, speaks to its importance to Reading’s downtown life.

And for many of us—myself included—Joseph’s is not just history. It’s personal.

Today, the former Joseph’s building at 408–410 Penn Street is occupied by Furniture Mecca, continuing the site’s long tradition of retail use in downtown Reading.