The Original Redemption Center

  When I was a kid, whenever you bought groceries or gasoline, you were given a sheet of what looked like postage stamps. Trading Stamps. These were typically S&H Green Stamps, a marketing ploy of two gentlemen, Sperry and Hutchinson. Hutchinson actually lived here in Ypsilanti, Michigan (not to be confused with Ypsilanti, North Dakota, a frequent mistake) .

Hutchinson built the finest house in town (to this day I believe).
The story can be found here.
 https://fornology.blogspot.com/2016/12/ypsilantis-hutchinson-house-built-with.html
It's a fascinating story.

The stamps would be pasted in books. Typically that was the job for the children in the family (like me). 
When the books were filled, they would be taken to a store called a Redemption Center, where the stamps could be redeemed for objects (think of the prizes at Chuck E Cheese) like toasters, blankets, lamps, etc.
I always wondered why they were called redemption centers. Why not trading centers?

This morning, it occurred to me that the American Populace at the time was very familiar with the term Redemption from having heard it at church. Was it marketing genius to use that word association?

Redemption in the church is where you take your relatively worthless life and trade it with God for a shiny new, better life, with an unlimited warranty. Guaranteed by the Full Faith and Credit of Jesus Christ who paid for the trade on the cross.

That makes this the original Redemption Center.

Or better yet, here:

It's a trade well worth making.

Yesterdays radio show explained  how short trading is done, how markets are manipulated and how people are manipulated. And how to overcome.