Where to find original sale prices for Singer sewing machines?

September 1, 2024 9:05 AM

E.g. what would a brand new model 99 with kneebar attachment have cost in 1927 in the U.S.?
posted by gray17 to Home & Garden (8 answers total)

You might inquire of the Vintage Sewing Center and Museum. No website, but you can message them through Facebook.
posted by hydrophonic at 9:17 AM on September 1

Sears sold them - the 1927 mail order catalog is 700+ pages but I bet the answer is there.
posted by I claim sanctuary at 9:49 AM on September 1 [5 favorites]

Best answer: I went through the Sears and Montgomery Ward catalogs from 1927 on archive.org and didn’t find Singer sewing machines (other brands, yes, but not Singers).

The ”oldsingersewingmachines” blog post category list which includes the model 99 has some scanned UK price lists from 1933, in case that’s helpful.
posted by bcwinters at 10:10 AM on September 1

Best answer: (Sewing machines are here in the 1927 Sears catalogue, but some pages are missing; here's the same in the 1926 catalogue which is a better scan.)
posted by offog at 10:18 AM on September 1 [1 favorite]

There are some online groups and forums where people might be able to point you to a lot of resources. Here are two - I know there are also some FB groups, and searching might find you other forums.
posted by trig at 11:13 AM on September 1

Best answer: 1924 Singer internal document, List of Singer Sewing Machines, with "prices, descriptions, and other information in relation to them," Smithsonian trade literature archive; see 1928 [stamp].
Singer Manufacturing Dates and Average Cash Cost chart (International Sewing Machine Collector's Society).

Singer sold direct to consumers (Sears & MW catalog listings are for competitors' knock-offs, unfortunately) and boasted that it had offices (retail outlets) in every city in the world. Singer pioneered the installment plan, offered free in-home trials, hired women to demonstrate the machines in its storefront windows (and at county and state fairs), offered sewing lessons, and had reps making home visits ("door to door salesmen" already in the neighborhood, collecting weekly payments on the rent-to-own machines). The advertisements aren't specific about prices: women (its target market) were encouraged to visit their local office to view the wide range of sewing machines and find the right model for their/their family's needs, or telephone the office to arrange in-home demonstrations. I think individual machines had mark-ups or discounts, depending on the buyer (minister's wives, for example). 1927 Singer Song Birds Trading Cards; a 1927 magazine advert.
posted by Iris Gambol at 11:57 AM on September 1 [5 favorites]

Response by poster: Great links, thanks everyone! In the UK the electric 99K sold for £14 (4 week's wages or 560 beers) if paid in cash upfront. A hand-cranked 99K was £8 and 14 shillings. Interestingly, a treadle-powered 66K (big brother of the 99K) with drop-leaf table was £12 12 shillings, less than the portable electric. In the U.S., the electronic 99 was about $77 ($1,384 in today's dollars). I got a working 99 at a flea market this summer for $60.
posted by gray17 at 2:10 PM on September 2

I have nothing to add to this excellent collection of information, but welcome to the 99 club (it's a great machine; mine has served me well for decades after serving someone else well for decades).
posted by confluency at 12:12 AM on September 3