A pioneer of the one-stop shop, a helping hand with a heart of gold—and twice purple— Paul Clements, made his way from Corinth to the Delta for a job at Tobe Kaplan’s specializing in men’s clothing. He met a bank teller at Cleveland State Bank, Jane Brown, a young, driven lady with servant’s soul, fell in love and set up shop creating a legacy that continues to live strong for more than three generations and 50 years long. Paul’s Mart evolved from what began as Top Dollar Store on Cotton Row in Cleveland in 1960. Paul an avid-outdoorsmen, veteran of WWII and man with experience in clothing and retail, did just what any Deltan would do and headed north to Memphis for the last season’s “steals”. He began purchasing army surplus including boots, rifles, and pick-up loads of camouflage netting—which in order to make a buck, became the front covering of a duck blind for many. The army surplus eventually led to connections at the big department store’s …show more content…
Then began the long-lasting legacy that we know as Paul’s Mart today.
It is safe to say, that the times have changed much more than Paul’s Mart and it’s comforting to know that wholesome basic principles for a small-town shop can still guide a business to prosper. Still specializing in clothing for sizes from infants to men’s size 5x and shoes up to size 17, Paul’s Mart continues to restock and buy outerwear, as well as men’s casual wear. A go-to for Carhartt and Drake or Walls and Key. Hip boots, waders, guns, sunglasses, hats, belts, wallets, knives this list goes on.
Perhaps, the most unique and arguably special aspect inside the store, aside from Becky Sheedy, Julie Mei and Ruby Mullins, their smiling faces, warm welcome and more knowledge of the outdoors than last year’s Farmer’s Almanac, is the ever-evolving period inventory of clothing, shoes, accessories, and cookware from the 60s, 70s and 80s. The surplus inventory that Paul once purchased from the most dapper of department stores on Memphis streets, is continuously updated as the ladies find time to sort through the extensive