It all began back in 1916 when E.I. Sinkoe, opened Charlotte Salvage to buy and sell with local merchants.

In 1921 he founded Sinkoe's, a small department store located in downtown Charlotte, N.C. The city was growing at the time, and E.I. figured there was a good opportunity to retail some of the wholesale merchandise he was buying and selling.

Today, the retail business of Charlotte Salvage is called The Famous Mart and is comprised of three stores in Charlotte. Both Charlotte Salvage and The Famous Mart are still family owned and operated by E.I. Sinkoe's son and grandsons.