S&H (short for Sperry & Hutchinson) started out in 1896 & peaked in the 1960s when they were printing 3x's as many stamps as the Post Office. Their redemption catalogs were the largest publication in the US in the 60s.
I remember my mom saved S&H, Gold Bond, & King Korn (we got King Korn at the D Supermarket Coaldale). I can't recall what stores & gas stations gave out what stamps (little help from the fan base here). S&H was by far the most popular & I believe their redemption center was in Hazleton.
Companies like S&H made their money selling stamps to retailers. The trade-off for retailers was building customer loyalty. Trading stamps declined in the 70s after our 1st gas price crisis & the mild recession that followed.
A "not so fond" childhood memory were those rainy day "lick & stick" sessions. Mom would save all the stamps in a desk drawer & usually twice a year those stamps had to find their way into coupon books. The stamps tasted horrible, but the family time together was great. I think my mom got a toaster from those coupon books.
S&H still has a version of their program today called "greenpoints". You can even redeem your old coupon books sitting in the attic or basement (minimum of 26 books are needed & there's lots of hoops to jump through).
Do you have trading stamps memories? We'd like to hear them--do you recall what you merchandise you got & what stores had what stamps.
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