A retail clothing store in Maine has been in business for over 100 years, and it's not the one you are thinking of.

During the '80s through the 2000s, there wasn't a person who lived in Maine who didn't know of the discount clothing store in Portland called Levinsky's. Even if you had never set foot in the Portland store, you saw their commercials, featuring Eric Levinsky, who sounds like a toned-down version of Big Al when he did commercials for Big Al's Super Values. The advertising works though.

In 1919 Jacob Levinsky opened up the first Levinsky's store in his apartment at 278 Congress Street, on the corner with India Street. It was originally called New England Army Supply as Levinsky had taken an interest in surplus stores, but it eventually became more clothing-oriented and took on the family name of "Levinsky's"

For many kids, Levinsky's was where you went to get your back-to-school clothing, because it was good quality and it was reasonably priced. Plus, they carried Levi's which every 80s and 90s kid was wearing to school.

The business did well for decades, but Eric realized he needed to make a change.

With the town of Windham quickly becoming a shopping hub with Walmart, Hannaford, Home Depot, Lowe's, and several restaurants along Route 302, Erich saw an opportunity to put Levinsky's right at the beginning of that shopping district.

In 2005, the Portland store was closed after almost 100 years as well as the Freeport, and Brewer stores. The Windham Mall location was also closed, but Levinsky's moved into the former Aubuchon Hardware where it has been ever since.

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The Portland location later became the flagship store of Levinsky's after opening additional stores in Freeport, the Windham Mall, and Brewer.

Today, Maine Medical Center's Portland Family Medicine building sits on the spot that Levinsky's used to be on.

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If you'd like to see what the Portland store looked like before it was torn down, you can see it through Portland Library's public commons.

Sadly, Jacob Levinsky passed away on June 7, 2024, at the age of 94. His family legacy, however, lives on.

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