Melba Mebane is pictured in 2006 in a Tyler Morning Telegraph newspaper clipping.

Back in the day, if you were a married man who needed an anniversary gift for your wife, Melba Mebane at Dillard’s in Tyler was your gal. And if a woman came in to see her at the cosmetics counter, Melba would ask, “Are you trying to land a man or are you trying to keep a man?”

No matter what a customer was looking for, Melba pretty much always nailed it.

“It was about that customer from the minute that she started until the end,” said James Saenz, store manager of Dillard’s in Tyler. “She always just said that she listened to the customer and she wanted every customer to feel that moment.”

After nearly 74 years with the department store, Melba officially retired in June.

“I loved going to work every day,” the 90-year-old Tyler woman said. “Unless I was really sick, I would use a day that I saved, but I never missed a day. I never called in.”

Before it was acquired by Dillard’s in 1956, Melba worked at the Mayer & Schmidt department store in Tyler as an “elevator girl” starting in 1949.

She also worked in the men’s clothing department then later in cosmetics, where she stayed until she retired.

“There were these gift baskets that one of the girls just could not sell … but when the baskets were brought down to me, I sold every single one,” Melba said. “And I was told that’s where I was staying.”

A 2006 article in the Tyler Morning Telegraph referenced Melba as someone “recognized all over town” due to her longtime service at Dillard’s.

According to her son Terry, Melba had a handful of loyal businesses from attorneys and doctors to small business owners that would only do business with her.

“If it’s Christmastime and they’re thinking of buying 14 bottles of Chanel No. 5, and it’s gonna be a $1,400 sale, they’re buying it from Melba. Nobody else,” he said.

It wasn’t long before Melba started getting recognitions and accolades for her work on the sales floor.

“She made Pacesetters every year,” Terry said. “In the store, if the goal was $300,000… whether you worked in Tupperware or women’s suits or men’s clothing or cosmetics, if you sold $150,000 or $175,000 or whatever the number was, you would get a ribbon and be a pacesetter. Then you’d get to go to a fancy dinner and awards banquet, and she made it every year.”

Terry has many fond memories of his mother working at Dillard’s, including getting to hang out in the store while his mother finished up her work for the night.

“There were times that I would get my grandfather to take me up to the store at about 7 p.m. and I would get to kind of run around the mall or the store and hang out with her so that I could ride with her home after she was off,” he said.

With so much experience and impeccable customer service, Melba was suggested for management positions but turned down the offers.

“If you’re on top, then you’re eventually gonna make somebody mad,” she said. “I just wanted to kind of stay under the radar.”

Melba was also approached by Macy’s to work for them when they opened in Tyler.

“Several people left Dillard’s to go work in management at Macy’s and they had a campaign of trying to get me to come over there, but I liked where I was, working at Dillard’s,” she said.

Although Melba never sought supervisory positions and was content with her role as a sales associate, she knew her value.

“There were times that they said there weren’t going to be any pay raises and do something else, she was very quick to go upstairs and go face to face to let them know what all she does in and for the store,” Terry said. “She wasn’t cocky about it, but she knew.”

When Melba was 65 years old, she was up for retirement and was ready; however, it was Mr. Dillard who convinced her to stick around a little while longer.

“Mr. Dillard said to her, ‘I’d love for you to stay if you want to, you don’t have to work nights or Sundays,’” Terry said. “That was important because she wanted to be in church and not miss any work. It was a game changer. She is a senior citizen and got to have her job, work four to five days a week, not go home at 9:30 at night. Instead, she got home at 5:30 or 6 o’clock, had a nice evening and then came back to work the next day.”

Saenz worked with Melba for three years before she retired and enjoyed her constant positivity.

“She always found the good in all circumstances and that’s a tough thing to do, especially in this day and age,” Saenz said. “But even at her age, Melba always saw things as a learning opportunity.”

During her seven decades in the department store, Melba had gone through numerous co-workers and managers, making lifelong friends and connections.

“She had stories… about what she’s done here, how she started as the elevator girl and how she just grew from there,” Saenz said. “I think the thing that I see in her is that she just was able to make these connections with customers from years past (and) her ability to be the top salesperson in the department time after time.”

But one bond that was constant was the one with the Dillard family.

“They would always walk in the store and … would go straight to her and visit with her,” Terry said. “If they really wanted to know the vision of the store or what’s going on, all they do is ask her and she’ll tell them.”

Melba even at times would babysit the Dillard children when they were younger, or just have a casual chat with “Mrs. Dillard.”

“Mom would talk on the phone with her and they would talk about just life and kids and whatever,” Terry said. “They would each ask how they were doing, their health, how the store was doing… they would talk on a monthly basis.”

Now that she is officially retired, Melba is looking forward to her days with her friends and family, especially seeing one of her grandchildren, Colton, graduate with a CRNA degree in Minnesota.

“She’d like to go see the Ark which is over in Kentucky,” Terry said. “There’s a replica of Noah’s Ark which is the length of three football fields or something.”

If she’s not traveling, you might find Melba at Jucy’s enjoying a hamburger and some onion rings, probably reminiscing the time she met Elvis long before he became a phenomenon.

“She would probably have the last name Mrs. Presley,” Terry teased.

According to Terry, back in her high school days, East Texas kids would drive to Shreveport to the state fairgrounds, where Elvis would perform, just as an Army guy from Mississippi playing the guitar and singing.

“We just thought he’s another hillbilly,” Melba said, “but he was quite the heartthrob!”

Melba enjoys her days at a retirement village in Tyler, spending time with her only son and family.

“Dillard’s was her second life,” Terry said. “They’ve been good to her, to us. She’s enjoyed every bit.”