Societal Influences
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Green Stamps were a type of loyalty
program that was popular in the United States from the late 1800s through the mid-1980s.
The program was created by the Sperry & Hutchinson Company (S&H) in 1896,
as a way to incentivize customers to purchase products from participating merchants.
The first Green Stamps were actually blue, but they were later changed to green
to make them easier to recognize. They were distributed by S&H through various
channels, including direct mail, newspaper inserts, and in-store promotions. Customers
would receive a certain number of stamps with each purchase, based on the dollar
amount spent.
The stamps themselves were small, perforated pieces of paper with a gummed back.
Customers would collect the stamps and then paste them into books, which could be
redeemed for merchandise from the S&H catalog. The catalog featured a wide range
of items, from household goods to jewelry and toys.
Over time, Green Stamps became more and more popular, and S&H expanded its
program to include more merchants and more ways to earn stamps. In the 1960s, the
company even began offering Green Stamps credit cards, which allowed customers to
earn stamps on all of their purchases, not just those made at participating merchants.
At its peak in the 1960s, the Green Stamps program was a cultural phenomenon,
with millions of Americans collecting and redeeming stamps. The program was so popular
that it even inspired a hit song, "Green Stamps," by Eddie Cochran.
However, by the 1970s, the popularity of Green Stamps began to decline. Inflation
made the stamps less valuable, and the rise of other loyalty programs, such as frequent
flyer miles and credit card rewards, made Green Stamps less relevant. In 1981, S&H
filed for bankruptcy, and the Green Stamps program officially came to an end.
Today, Green Stamps are remembered as a nostalgic relic of a bygone era, a time
when collecting and redeeming stamps was a popular pastime for American families.
While the program may be gone, its legacy lives on, as many people still remember
the thrill of filling up a Green Stamps book and redeeming it for a coveted item
from the catalog.
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