Joseph A. Taichert Company.

The Joseph A. Taichert Company originated in Las Vegas, New Mexico in 1908. Joseph A. Taichert (1882-1955), moved from Kentucky and opened a men's clothing store that year upon his arrival in the city. He later engaged his younger brother Milton (1892-1989) as a business partner. The Taicherts initially started into the sale of furs and pelts, and branched into the retail clothing business in 1915.

The retail side of the business first consisted of the men's clothing store, which was simply called Taichert's. A ladies' ready-to-wear store, called the Sorority Shoppe, was established in 1938. The men's store was located at 610 Douglas Avenue in Las Vegas; the women's store, at 610 1/2 Douglas . It served the greater Las Vegas area, as well as outlying towns in the region. Later, the ladies' clothing store was located within the Taichert's flagship store. The Taicherts also opened another small store in Santa Fe.

The fur and pelt business was an extension of the topography around Las Vegas, which was located near high mountains and rolling meadows. This region was home to a wide variety of wild and domesticated animals, which included beaver, mountain lion, rabbit, skunk, sheep, and goats. Fur and animal hides were of great value in garment manufacturing before the onset of synthetic apparel materials throughout the United States. The Taichert's fur and pelt business cultivated a ready market for a variety of clothing lines. This section of the enterprise allowed the consignment of wool and furs from individuals in New Mexico, which included Guadalupe, Rio Arriba, San Miguel, Mora, Union, and Lincoln Counties. The Taicherts also bought hides from trappers or merchants in other Southwestern states and Mexico. Much of their sheep and wool trade originated from the Navajo Nation and nearby trading posts. The Taichert's fur enterprise, at its height, was one of the largest operations of its kind in the southwestern United States.

To collect the furs or related materials, the Taicherts maintained a trucking operation that gathered the merchandise and hauled it back to company warehouses in Las Vegas for future dispersal. Once other companies accepted the consignments, the Taichert Company shipped the furs and pelts around the country via railroad, and then paid the trappers and herders for their product after the consignees released the funds generated through the sale of furs and pelts in storage.

The rise of synthetic fibers in garment manufacturing in the 1950s and 1960s, and the decline of fur trapping sources, eventually closed the Taichert's fur operation. In addition, the growth of mail-order merchandising and large suburban malls in nearby Santa Fe and Albuquerque with greater choices for Las Vegas-area shoppers led to a decline for local merchants such as the Taicherts. Milton Taichert eventually sold the family's interest in the business to Gary McKinley of Las Vegas in the early 1980s. McKinley ran Taichert's Store until 2004, when it ceased operations.

(Information on the Taichert Company was taken from phone interviews with Gary McKinley of Las Vegas, New Mexico on August 2, 2005, and with Jon Bell of Albuquerque, New Mexico on 3 August 2005.)

The Joseph A. Taichert Company originated in Las Vegas, New Mexico in 1908. Joseph A. Taichert (1882-1955), moved from Kentucky and opened a men's clothing store that year upon his arrival in the city. He later engaged his younger brother Milton (1892-1989) as a business partner. The Taicherts initially started into the sale of furs and pelts, and branched into the retail clothing business in 1915.

The retail side of the business first consisted of the men's clothing store, which was simply called Taichert's. A ladies' ready-to-wear store, called the Sorority Shoppe, was established in 1938. The men's store was located at 610 Douglas Avenue in Las Vegas; the women's store, at 610 1/2 Douglas . It served the greater Las Vegas area, as well as outlying towns in the region. Later, the ladies' clothing store was located within the Taichert's flagship store. The Taicherts also opened another small store in Santa Fe.

The fur and pelt business was an extension of the topography around Las Vegas, which was located near high mountains and rolling meadows. This region was home to a wide variety of wild and domesticated animals, which included beaver, mountain lion, rabbit, skunk, sheep, and goats. Fur and animal hides were of great value in garment manufacturing before the onset of synthetic apparel materials throughout the United States. The Taichert's fur and pelt business cultivated a ready market for a variety of clothing lines. This section of the enterprise allowed the consignment of wool and furs from individuals in New Mexico, which included Guadalupe, Rio Arriba, San Miguel, Mora, Union, and Lincoln Counties. The Taicherts also bought hides from trappers or merchants in other Southwestern states and Mexico. Much of their sheep and wool trade originated from the Navajo Nation and nearby trading posts. The Taichert's fur enterprise, at its height, was one of the largest operations of its kind in the southwestern United States.

To collect the furs or related materials, the Taicherts maintained a trucking operation that gathered the merchandise and hauled it back to company warehouses in Las Vegas for future dispersal. Once other companies accepted the consignments, the Taichert Company shipped the furs and pelts around the country via railroad, and then paid the trappers and herders for their product after the consignees released the funds generated through the sale of furs and pelts in storage.

The rise of synthetic fibers in garment manufacturing in the 1950s and 1960s, and the decline of fur trapping sources, eventually closed the Taichert's fur operation. In addition, the growth of mail-order merchandising and large suburban malls in nearby Santa Fe and Albuquerque with greater choices for Las Vegas-area shoppers led to a decline for local merchants such as the Taicherts. Milton Taichert eventually sold the family's interest in the business to Gary McKinley of Las Vegas in the early 1980s. McKinley ran Taichert's Store until 2004, when it ceased operations.1

1. Information on the Taichert Company was taken from phone interviews with Gary McKinley of Las Vegas, New Mexico on August 2, 2005, and with Jon Bell of Albuquerque, New Mexico on 3 August 2005.