Endicott-Johnson was hurt by the Depression of the 1930s, but since shoes were a necessity, did better than other manufacturing sectors of the economy. Orders for shoes from the military in World War II in the 1940s propelled employment over the peak attained in the early 1920s. Unfortunately, the management of Endicott-Johnson after the death of George F. Johnson in 1948 couldn't cope with a more affluent era in the 1950s and 1960s when footwear became mainly a fashion business in the United States. More importantly, little if any money was invested in improving the original 1900 manufacturing technology, which meant that foreign countries could make the same shoes at a lower price. Loss of market share resulted in the closing and sale of the Endicott factories.