TV REVIEW : A Marketing Revolution in ‘Mr. Sears’ Catalogue’

“Mr. Sears’ Catalogue,” airing at 9 tonight on Channels 28 and 15, is a clever, entertaining history lesson.

A worthy addition to the second season of PBS’ excellent series, “The American Experience,” “Sears” uses the story of the birth and early success of the catalogue of catalogues as a framework to examine America from 1890 through the early ‘20s, a time of radical change in the makeup of the nation.

A nice mix of period still photographs, primitive newsreels and interviews with historians, “Sears” clearly shows that the twice-yearly, 4-pound catalogue was much more than just an efficient marketing tool--it was a unique way of bringing a sense of connection to millions of Americans, many of them isolated in rural areas.

Richard Warren Sears, a stationmaster in a tiny Minnesota town, got his retailing start when a shipment of watches went unclaimed. He sold the watches for the company that shipped them. A marketing institution was born: The watch company became the biggest seller of mail-order watches in the country. In 1893, Sears started the general catalogue with a handful of employees, writing all the copy himself, a practice he continued for many years. By 1906, he employed 13,000 to handle the astounding volume of orders.

It was a marketing revolution. Almost single-handedly, Sears brought all the objects of the material world to anyone’s doorstep, eventually reaching 20 million households. A Sears catalogue and a Bible were often the only two books in many rural homes. He earned such trust and good will that men and women would write asking him to choose products for them to buy. Some even asked for him to play matchmaker.

Written and produced by Edward Gray and Mark Obenhaus, “Mr. Sears’ Catalogue” is a charming look at an America making the transition to the 20th Century.