Furniture First capped off 2023 with the addition of two retailers to its rank of members: Blowing Rock Furniture Gallery in Blowing Rock, NC, and Currie’s Furniture in Traverse City, MI.
In spring 2014, Blowing Rock Furniture Gallery opened its doors, following a restructuring necessitated by the closure of Broyhill, the namesake of the store’s prior incarnation of 10 years. A dedicated management team and new investors allowed the operation to survive and thrive. The two-story log cabin showroom situated along the beautiful Blue Ridge Parkway on Highway 321, the location allows customers to “shop with a view.” Today the store is owned and operated by Rhonda Smith, with her son, Jacob Smith.
Currie’s Furniture was founded in 1993 when Greg and Karlene Currie purchased a small furniture store just south of Chum’s Corners in Traverse City. In five short years, Currie’s remodeled and doubled the size of the showroom. A state-of-the-art warehouse followed in 2016, allowing the retailers to offer the largest in-stock inventory warehouse facility in Northwest Michigan.
“Independent retailers like Blowing Rock Furniture Gallery and Currie’s Furniture are the backbone of our cooperative,” said Andrew Kauffman, CEO of Furniture First. “We were founded 30 years ago by retailers, just like these two, who realized that they could buy better and be more profitable by working together. The added benefit of networking with others who face the same challenges, but are not direct competitors, makes Furniture First an even greater resource to independent stores, whether they have one location or a chain of a dozen.”
Furniture First is a cooperative national home furnishings and mattress buying group serving full line independent retailers with sales of over $2 million. Collectively, the group sells $3 billion at retail with their approved merchandise programs in the 522 member storefronts. Furniture First will have a presence at the Las Vegas Market in the showroom of Parker House, WMC A854. Last October Furniture First opened a new High Point showroom at 336 South Main Street, in the heart of the High Point Market district.
