Department stores occupy a distinctive place in Huntington's retail ecosystem. They serve shoppers who want to complete several errands in one trip, compare brands side by side, and rely on staff who can advise across categories rather than a single product line. While online shopping has changed browsing habits, the local department store still wins on fit, feel and immediacy.
The Role of Department Stores in Huntington
Huntington draws shoppers from a wide surrounding area, which makes multi-category retail especially valuable. A family driving in for the afternoon may need school clothes, kitchen basics, a gift and a pair of shoes. Stores that can cover all of that efficiently earn repeat visits, and the strongest performers in the city have leaned into convenience: clearer floor layouts, in-store pickup counters and better-trained floor teams.
Local department stores also function as seasonal barometers. Back-to-school, holiday gifting and spring refresh cycles drive the bulk of annual traffic, and the best operators plan staffing, stock depth and fitting-room capacity around those peaks.
The Top 10 Best Department Stores in Huntington
1. Pullman Square Department Emporium
Located in the heart of the city's walkable shopping district, this store balances mainstream apparel labels with home essentials and a well-stocked beauty floor. Its strength is merchandising clarity: departments are logically sequenced, signage is simple, and seasonal displays make it easy to shop quickly without wandering.
2. Mainline Family Outfitters
A department store built around households rather than trends. Children's clothing, school uniforms, workwear and basics anchor the floor, with generous size ranges and frequent multi-buy pricing. Parents value the fitting rooms designed for kids and the straightforward exchange policy on outgrown items.
3. Fourth Avenue Trading Company
This store blends apparel with a strong homeware and giftware offer, including cookware, bedding and decorative accessories. It has become a reliable destination for wedding and housewarming gifts, supported by a registry service and staff who know their kitchen inventory in real detail.
4. Riverport Style House
Fashion-forward and trend-driven, Riverport targets younger shoppers and professionals updating a wardrobe. Denim, outerwear, footwear and accessories dominate, with rotating capsule collections that refresh the floor far more frequently than a traditional department store cycle.
5. Cabell County Mercantile
A long-standing local institution with a broad mid-market assortment and a reputation for service continuity. Many staff have worked the same departments for years, which produces genuinely useful advice on sizing, fabric care and product longevity, something newer competitors struggle to replicate.
6. Highlawn Home and Apparel
Highlawn splits its floor almost evenly between clothing and home improvement adjacent goods, including storage, small appliances and seasonal decor. It appeals to homeowners who prefer to combine a wardrobe top-up with practical household purchases in a single stop.
7. Ohio Riverfront Outlet Store
Operating on an off-price model, this store carries overstock and previous-season merchandise at reduced prices. Inventory changes weekly, which rewards frequent visitors and creates a treasure-hunt dynamic that has built a loyal, deal-focused customer base.
8. Marshall Campus Store and Essentials
Serving the student population and university community, this location combines casual apparel, branded merchandise, dorm essentials and everyday convenience goods. Its calendar is built around academic terms, with heavy stock ahead of move-in and exam periods.
9. Guyan Valley Department Shop
A neighbourhood-scale department store focused on accessibility and value, with strong basics in menswear, womenswear and household linens. Its compact footprint and easy parking make it a favourite among older shoppers and anyone avoiding larger complexes.
10. Beverly Hills Plaza Retail House
This store emphasises a premium in-store experience, with a curated beauty counter, fragrance selection, formalwear and personal shopping appointments. It fills the gap for customers who want a more considered, service-heavy visit rather than a purely transactional one.
Industry Trends Reshaping Department Retail
Omnichannel fulfilment is now the biggest differentiator. Stores offering buy-online-pickup-in-store, easy in-store returns for digital orders and accurate live inventory data hold their traffic far better than those treating physical and online as separate businesses. Experience-led floor space is also expanding, with beauty services, alterations, personal styling and events used to justify a trip that convenience alone no longer guarantees.
At the same time, assortment discipline is improving. Rather than stocking everything shallowly, successful Huntington department stores are narrowing categories and going deeper in the ones where they genuinely compete, particularly footwear, denim, bedding and beauty.
How to Get the Most from a Department Store Visit
Go with a list and a priority order, since department stores are designed to encourage discovery. Check clearance sections early rather than last, as best sizes disappear first. Ask about price adjustment windows, loyalty programmes and alteration services, all of which quietly add value that off-price online retailers cannot match.
For larger purchases such as coats, suits or bedding sets, use the fitting and returns policy as a decision tool: a store confident in its merchandise will make trying and returning easy.
Final Thoughts
Huntington's department stores succeed by doing what digital shopping still cannot: letting customers touch, try and compare in one visit, with human advice attached. Whether the priority is value, fashion, family basics or a premium service experience, the city offers a credible option in each category. Choose the store whose strongest department matches what you actually came to buy.