I remember shopping at Penney's for fabric...exactly the same meter and tube system. I was just fascinated with the tube system and loved to watch the carriers zipping up and back from the cashiers. And our Penney's was a two story store! One of two multi-story buildings in our little town back in the '50s.
We also shopped at a couple of fabric stores in downtown McAllen, TX (which was SO small back then)with Spanish names: La Barata and La Dama Elegante. I loved those names!
Anita