Back in 1951, the giant retail pioneer Sears took a gamble and imported 1,000 Vespa 125s to see if they would sell. The gamble paid off, and for the next 15 years or so you would find Vespas listed in their massive yearly mail-order catalog. (No kidding, it was MASSIVE; find one from the 50's or 60's. It'll blow your mind.)
Sears re-branded everything as their house brand "Allstate", and wasn't shy about mixing different makes together so they'd have a variety of scooters & small motorbikes to suit as many customers as possible. You'd find Cushmans, Puchs, and who knows what else side by side in the catalog every year . . . as this 1954 page testifies. Scroll down for a close-up of the good stuff.
