Saskatoon Express, July 4, 2016

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SASKATOONEXPRESS - July 4-10, 2016 - Page 1

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Volume 14, Issue 26, Week of July 4, 2016

Saskatoonʼs REAL Community Newspaper

Frank Atchison: Like another famous Frank, he did it his way

Along with working on the railroad, Frank Atchison has been in the menswear business for 45 years. (Photo by Joanne Paulson) Joanne Paulson Saskatoon Express ew are the people who can take you back 90 years, through a depression, a war, two careers, eight businesses and a history of retailing. Francis James Atchison is one of those rare people. Known to all as Frank, the founder of Atch & Co. menswear is still in business, walking from his condo to Eighth Street and catching the bus downtown five days a week. Until he moved from his home on Grosvenor Crescent, Atchison walked to work. And back. Every day. He reached the 90 year milestone on June 15, and this year celebrates 45 years in menswear retailing. Only Elwood Flynn can match that kind of longevity on both fronts. KK070419 Karen Atchison’s is a long and full life, in

F

which he has seen many significant ups and downs and persevered. It all began in Fillmore, Saskatchewan, where he was born to George and Jessie Atchison, an only child. His father was a farmer, and moved the family nearer to Regina when Frank Atchison was four years old. They subsequently moved into the city, where he attended school. It wasn’t Atchison’s favourite thing. “Then I was going to make a fortune,” he said in an interview, clad stylishly in summery green on a bright, sunny June day. “Sixteen years old, I went to Toronto. The war was on, so jobs were very plentiful.” He bounced a bit from job to job, “but I never found the million dollar job,” he said, a little ruefully, a little jokingly.

He returned to Regina in 1943, and at only 17, began his long relationship with retailing by landing a job at an elite menswear store. Down the street was a coffee shop that served as a gathering spot for teenagers, and a great place to meet young women. “I had my eye on this pretty girl called Martha Miller, and said, I’m going to marry that girl.’ And so I did, Aug. 12, 1944.” The young couple lived with Atchison’s parents for a while, until the war knocked on the family door. “I got called into the army in February 1945,” recalled Atchison. He did his basic training at Canadian Forces Base Shilo in Manitoba, but luckily the war was nearing the end: “I was discharged in May 1945. I

saw V-E Day in Regina on Scarth Street; there was a huge crowd. Everyone was so happy the war was over. “I went back to my old job, because that was the agreement in those days; you could go back to your job (after serving in the army),” he said. “There we are. Back in the clothing business. “It wasn’t a very well-paid job, and being a high-end store, I was spending more than I was making,” he recalled. “The boss didn’t think I was as good as I thought I was.” That was Atchison’s interpretation when he asked for a raise, but didn’t get it; and with input from Martha, the two decided to get on the bus and head for Melville — and a job on the railroad. (Continued on page 5)

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