New Jersey Stores That Meant So Much To Us, But Are Now Gone

I woke up today thinking about so many amazing stores in New Jersey that were such a big part of growing up in The Garden State.

This focus is specifically about iconic New Jersey stores that we grew up with, but, are now closed.

Sadly, there are so many to choose from.

The one that I miss the absolute most is “Two Guys.”

Our ”Two Guys” department store was located on the Black Horse Pike in West Atlantic City, New Jersey. They had a number other locations.

This location is now the Atlantic City Police Tow Lot.

Each and every time that I drive past this site, I think about a wonderful childhood, where we would go to Two Guys … it seemed … all of the time.

Whether it was for back to school shopping, or, for any basic need or want that you could think of. I always believed that Two Guys had everything.

Our working motto was, if Two Guys didn’t have it … then, you didn’t need it.

One of my most memorable experiences at Two Guys is now hilariously funny … but it wasn’t then!

My twin brother Don and I were shopping for back to school stuff, including clothes. I don’t remember the exact year, but, I do know that it was more than 50 years ago.

And, I remember it like it happened yesterday. We loved the Adidas Super Star sneakers … but, we couldn’t afford them.

However, Two Guys was there to come to the rescue. In a bin, there were “knock off version” Adidas Super Star sneakers, right down to the hard rubber toe area and the classic three stripe Adidas look.

The sneakers were not in a box, they were held together with a plastic tie … you had to feverishly search through the bin and hope that they had your size.

My head was down and was scrambling. Next thing I know … I hear Don call out, “I got ‘em.”

As it turns out, Don got the very last pair with three stripes. Much to my sadness, all they had left, were versions with four stripes.

It was heartbreaking, because I knew I would get some level of grief at school for wearing “Bo Bo” sneakers.

Wearing a pair of “knock-off” Adidas Super Star sneakers with four stripes helped build character. What else can I say at this point?

A few years ago, Don created this meme to memorialize this grand occasion. See directly below.

Here is Don’s masterpiece:

On a serious note, directly below, is a photo gallery of so many amazing New Jersey stores … that we all loved … that were open for generations … but, sadly are now closed forever.

Let me know what you think about our list and reach out to me and share your favorites and any great stores of yesteryear that I missed.

Please enjoy our photo gallery and comments about each store.