Furniture is a very personal thing. How much more personal do you get in life with anything or anyone than you do with your favorite chair? Some folks have been willing to give up their spouses, but when it comes to a favorite piece of furniture, well, that is an entirely different matter.
So when a furniture store owner like Roger Rose tells you the key to success in his business is to treat people right and give great personal service, you should pay attention.
Get the point? It’s all about getting it right, through personal service. That chair might be with that customer for a lifetime.
Rose has been doing this for a number of years in the Twin Cities. And he has built a lot of strong relationships. His customers have learned to trust his expertise and honesty. He and his wife, Linda, have owned Rose’s Furniture on Gold Street in Centralia for 15 years. She is the bookkeeper.
They actually met in one of two different furniture stores in downtown Chehalis that he managed. She was the Chehalis native (they live less than a mile from where she grew up) and he, a young transplant from eastern Oregon.
To make a long story short, the furniture business was floundering in the late 1990s and that led to the closing of the McMahan’s Furniture chain, which in turn led to the beginning of Rose’s Furniture a little later.
The real change for the Roses came when they landed the La-Z-Boy dealership, which led to the first major overhaul of the large space on Gold Street — which used to be a lumberyard — in 2003.
To be a La-Z-Boy Comfort Studio, the showroom has to meet a number of special requirements. About half of the furniture on the showroom floor is from La-Z-Boy. Maybe it’s a commentary on the local population, but there apparently are plenty of lazy boys around. With that in mind, the store grew quickly and has been thriving ever since.
It’s not hard to see how Roger Rose became successful. Every morning the coffee is brewed fresh and the chocolate chip cookies are put out for visitors. On this morning Clara Pickens, an old friend and customer, stopped by for a cookie, some coffee and to chat a little.
“We’re both from small towns in eastern Oregon, and we met here when my husband and I moved to Centralia,” she says.
Roger is checking on a relative in Florida, wondering if the hurricane will be a major problem. He didn’t find out because the storm was still a day away, which leads to the second major overhaul of Rose’s Furniture in 2008. Anyone want to guess why? Well, if anyone has forgotten about the Great Flood, this story might serve as a grim reminder.
Like so many businesses and homeowners in Chehalis and Centralia, virtually everything was damaged severely or wiped out. That’s how bad the storm and flooding was.
Many folks still talk about it like it was yesterday. The memories are that painful and fused into the brains of those who suffered. To this day, Lewis County is still looking at flood control measures. So when the flood warnings go up, people remember the nightmare and pray that they don’t have to relive it.
Business is brisk at Rose’s Furniture. It’s a sign that the local housing market has improved drastically over the past year or two.
Of course, furniture sales in cities with booming housing markets are going through the roof, according to U.S. Furniture and Home Furnishings Store Sales.
Things are slower but steady locally, or so says the Northwest MLS. Both prices and sales are up from a year ago. When home sales increase, everyone benefits.
This means the market for La-Z-Boy products, as well as other lines, should remain strong.
When asked about the journey he’s taken, Rose says, “We’re thankful for how we have done.”
Perhaps the biggest change in the industry is the use of online shopping. Customers do price comparison shopping on the internet on everything from houses, cars and boats to, well, yes, furniture.
That’s a good thing and a bad thing. It’s good if the research has been done well. If not, it can present problems.
La-Z-Boy is about as fine a product as one can buy. But there are knockoffs sold in big box chain stores. The difference? The knockoffs will fall apart. Furniture is one of those things — you get what you pay for — that’s is actually true.
Besides, the coffee, cookies and customer service at Rose’s Furniture will help make your purchase even more of a pleasure.
Rose’s Furniture
1530 Gold Street
Centralia, WA 98531
360-807-1211
