Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1901-02-07
SHE MADE A FORTUNE.
Originator of Silk Skirt Scheme is
Mrs. John A. Chambers.

A remarkably clever woman, who
has made a fortune by the exercise Of
her own ingenuity and ability, has
been visiting in Syracuse. She is
Mrs. John A. Chambers, known in
every state of the Union as the origi-
nator of the coupon silk skirt chain.
Only a few years ago Mrs. Cham
bers was Syracuse dressmaker. She
went out to sew at $1.25 day, and her
husband was an employe of the Electric
Light Power company. Now she is
worth in the neighborhood of $4,000,
and is rated in Bradstreet's as a bust
ness woman of recognized standing.
The astonishing feature in her story,
too, is that her money was made in
less than year. Of the coupon silk
skirts almost every woman has heard,
| if she is not herself wearing one. Mrs.
| Chambers started them. 1t was in
about 1893 that she removed from
| Syracuse to Watertown. There she
was at first employed as a forewoman
in a dressmaking shop, and later
opened an establishment of her own,
where she employed a number of girls.
Only a year ago last spring the in
spiration for the silk skirt scheme
came to her She got her coupons
printed and put them on the market.
The thing took like wildfre, and
hundreds of women in Syracuse ana
all over the country helped it along.
There was the maddest sort of rush
after the skirts. The coupons came
in books which contained five apiece.
You paid $1.25 for book and sold its
| coupons to others at Is cents each.
The holders of these coupons were
each entitled to buy book for them
selves. When they had fulfilled that
requirement Mrs. Chambers was in
receipt of 1925, and your silk skirt
was promptly forwarded to you. It
had cost you only the rs cents which
1925 which you advanced for your
book was reimbursed for by selling it's
contents to other coupon buyers.
There was such a demand for skirts
as the unpretentious little dressmaker
had never dreamed of. An immense
volume of business poured in on her
and she was obliged to open branch
headquarters in Chicago and Kansas
City. By and by, also, she started
silk waists on the coupon system, and
they went almost equally as well. In
some of the western states there was
an attempt made to prove the scheme
illegal In Chicago they tried to ar
rest her manager, but all efforts to
break the chain that now reached
across the continent failed It was
within the letter of the law.
In the few months from May to
| September Mrs. Chambers had been
fairly coming money. She had made
| thousands more than she had ever an
ticipated earning in whole life
| time before.
| Just about year ago she had an
offer from a man who wanted to buy
out her business. She thought it
over and accepted. She sold out her
silk waist system for $4,000 and her
silk skirt system for $4,000, making
a clear $4,000. She then signed a
contract with the man 60 work in his
employ as manager of the business at
$4,000 year.
But the wonderful boom was past
So many women from Maine to Cali
fornia were clothed in silk skirts and
silk waists that coupons ceased to sell
as rapidly as they had at first. Some
bought books and couldn't dispose Of
their contents and so the enthusiasm
waxed cold. The industry was no
longer the gold mine that it had once
BEEN
Mrs. Chambers got out of it and
took her fortune with her just in
time. She remained in the employ
OF the man who bought it just six
months. Then she and her husband
went west, where they are now en-
gagged in starting syndicate of and
10-cent stores.-Syracuse Post-Stand-
ard.