centers began to grow, The Bon-Ton opened 11 new stores in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. The 1980s formed a period of rapid consolidation in the retail department store industry as major chains bought their competitors. The Bon-Ton Stores began the decade by opening more stores, establishing a new division, Maxwell's, and acquiring L S Good (including its Fowler's department stores). When Tim Grumbacher was made CEO in 1985, the company operated 18 stores in four states. Two years later, the company made a major move, buying the 11-store Pomeroy's chain from Allied Department Stores. That purchase made it possible for the company to move into seven new markets in Pennsylvania. In 1991, The Bon-Ton acquired J.W. Rhodes in Ithaca, New York. The Bon-Ton entered the Lancaster, Pennsylvania, market in 1992 with the acquisition of two Watt & Shand locations in downtown Lancaster and Park City Center. The company continued to expand its New York presence in 1993 with a store in the Wilton Mall in Saratoga Springs in the former Addis & Dey's space. In the late 1980s, the company also acquired a York, Pennsylvania family-operated department store, Mailman's from Stanley Mailman, which converted to a Bon-Ton location. In July 1994, The Bon-Ton purchased the 127-year-old Adam, Meldrum, and Anderson Company chain based in Buffalo, New York, for $42.6 million converting all locations to The Bon Ton. Around the same time, The Bon-Ton also purchased Chappell's of Syracuse, New York, and Hess's of Allentown, Pennsylvania. The Bon-Ton initially retained and operated Hess's flagship location until 1996, when it closed after nearly 100 years of continuous operation. The site was eventually demolished. Its Allentown store, Hess's former south Allentown location, was the anchor of the South Mall. In 1995, The Bon-Ton entered the Rochester, New York market in three former McCurdy's locations, as well as in a former McCurdy's space (originally Iszard's) in Elmira. In the following spring, the company opened a fourth Rochester location in a former Sibley's/Kaufmann's location. In March 1995, The Bon-Ton closed the landmark downtown Lancaster store. Later that year, they also closed the downtown AM&A's location. 1998's expansion included a new store in Westfield, Massachusetts, making it The Bon-Ton Stores' first entry into the New England area. Operations in 2000s In October 2003, The Bon-Ton expanded its reach into Ohio and the lower Midwest with the acquisition of the 69-store Elder-Beerman store chain. Following an attempt