Nebraska Furniture Mart is the bomb.

[ArrowheadHawk]

Wow I've never been in a furniture store so big. I spent 3 grand on furniture, good furniture, and only had to spend about 100 bucks to have it all delivered to Topeka. That store is awesome I don't think I will be shopping for furniture anywhere else unless I move. Their prices are awesome. I love living in civilization and not BFE, aka Garden City Kansas.

[Sure-Oz]

I got my HDTV there and my gf and parents go there strictly for their furniture and electronics needs. They also approve credit easily and have zero percent deals all the damn time.

Great store!

[Skip Towne]

Wow I've never been in a furniture store so big. I spent 3 grand on furniture, good furniture, and only had to spend about 100 bucks to have it all delivered to Topeka. That store is awesome I don't think I will be shopping for furniture anywhere else unless I move. Their prices are awesome. I love living in civilization and not BFE, aka Garden City Kansas.

Never been to one. I'm using old "Arkansas Driftwood" furniture I got down at the flea market. Have you started your new job yet?

[BWillie]

Wow I've never been in a furniture store so big. I spent 3 grand on furniture, good furniture, and only had to spend about 100 bucks to have it all delivered to Topeka. That store is awesome I don't think I will be shopping for furniture anywhere else unless I move. Their prices are awesome. I love living in civilization and not BFE, aka Garden City Kansas.

And think, in a year and a half when you have to move and want to sell it. A cheap ass like me will come along on craiglist and get all what you paid 3 grand for for 500 dollars. And it'll be the exact same thing with very minor depreciation. :)

[BigRedChief]

Yep, bought a big screen tv and 3 huge leather recliners there. Helluva deal.

[Buehler445]

Bigass store.

Stop by Cabela's next time....and buy high margin items.

[Buehler445]

How do you like your new job?

[blaise]

It's good but they did try and rip us off once. We ordered a bedroom set and when they delivered it one of the endtable was broken and so they put it back on the truck and said they'd get us a new one. A week or so later they called us to say it was in. Then when we said when can you deliver it they didn't want to deliver it for free. But the did. Then a week later they sent us a bill for the cost of the endtable. So my wife had to call and remind them of the situation. They said ok. Then a month or so later they sent us a letter saying they were sending us to collections is we didn't pay, so my wife had to call and get basically argue with them before they finally agreed we didn't owe the money.
But that's just one situation. I guess every store has stuff like that. Still, it pissed me off at the time.

[Groves]

and only had to spend about 100 bucks to have it all delivered to Topeka.

I once drove an old beater car to a new car dealership, and they flat out gave me 6 grand for it! $6000!!!!!!

[Saulbadguy]

The furniture is kind of cheap crap but other than that they are a pretty good store.

[banyon]

Hey, Garden at least has a Target and a Home Depot. Dodge is Walmart or Bust.

[burt]

Hate to say this....but I have a MUCH better hook up on furniture. If any one needs good furniture, cheap, PM me!

[Bowser]

Dangerous place. I can blow huge lumps of money out there.

[Buehler445]

Hey, Garden at least has a Target and a Home Depot. Dodge is Walmart or Bust.

Scott City has Poamida and Alco!!!
Posted via Mobile Device

[Bugeater]

Hate to say this....but I have a MUCH better hook up on furniture. If any one needs good furniture, cheap, PM me!
What are you gonna do, hijack one of Domer's moving vans?

[morphius]

Never been to one. I'm using old "Arkansas Driftwood" furniture I got down at the flea market. Have you started your new job yet?
I wouldn't spend much money on a furniture either if I knew my house was soon going to burn down.

[Skip Towne]

I wouldn't spend much money on a furniture either if I knew my house was soon going to burn down.

That's not going to happen again. Twice per lifetime is enough for anybody.

[morphius]

That's not going to happen again. Twice per lifetime is enough for anybody.
None is enough, once is already too much. I get your point though.

[Baby Lee]

The furniture is kind of cheap crap but other than that they are a pretty good store.

I can honestly say that was the first place I saw an honest to goodness Barcalounger up close. Thought that was a made up TV name for a recliner before that.

[Lzen]

The furniture is kind of cheap crap but other than that they are a pretty good store.

I bought a couple of Lazy Boy recliners there last summer. I wouldn't normally consider Lazy Boy cheap. Still, I did have a problem with the thread coming out and a button got lost. But they (NFM) sent someone out to fix it. We also bought a coffee table and end table at that time. The tables have been solid and we got them for pretty cheap.

The cheap furniture is stuff like Ashley furniture. But I believe they have decent quality furniture, too.

[Baby Lee]

For me, the furniture and electronics is just aigh't, can get as good at American or Ultimate Electronics. What makes NFM for me is the kitchen wares, since HOme Depo Expo went out, it's the best place to check out top of the line kitchen stuff. When we get moms in the right mental place to eff with her tile job, we're getting her a Rosle utensil/pot hanging system.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3031/3113516965_cb6ac4c2e8.jpg

[Lzen]

Arrowheadhawk,

How long have you been in Topeka? In which part of town do you live?

[eazyb81]

Wait 3 months to see how that "awesome furniture" holds up.

Sorry but Neb Furniture Mart is crap. I would rather pay slightly more for much better quality.

[Bugeater]

Wait 3 months to see how that "awesome furniture" holds up.

Sorry but Neb Furniture Mart is crap. I would rather pay slightly more for much better quality.
All of the stuff we bought from there when we moved into our house 9 years ago has held up just fine.

[Skip Towne]

All of the stuff we bought from there when we moved into our house 9 years ago has held up just fine.

Do you have kids who use the couch for a trampoline?

[eazyb81]

All of the stuff we bought from there when we moved into our house 9 years ago has held up just fine.

That's nice. However, most people I have met personally who have shopped there have ended up disappointed in the long run.

[Bugeater]

Do you have kids who use the couch for a trampoline?
Nope, no one is allowed to use the living room furniture. It's just for show.

[ArrowheadHawk]

Never been to one. I'm using old "Arkansas Driftwood" furniture I got down at the flea market. Have you started your new job yet?Yes I started on Tuesday.

And think, in a year and a half when you have to move and want to sell it. A cheap ass like me will come along on craiglist and get all what you paid 3 grand for for 500 dollars. And it'll be the exact same thing with very minor depreciation. :)Uhm. No. Compared to what I was looking at the quality was better and cheaper.

How do you like your new job?Good so far. A little slow this week but hopefully it will pick up.

The furniture is kind of cheap crap but other than that they are a pretty good store.I don't think lazy boy is cheap. Well I guess I'm cheap then.

Arrowheadhawk,

How long have you been in Topeka? In which part of town do you live?I have been in Topeka for a week. Right now I live in the Holiday Inn. My duplex will be ready on Monday. It is located near Shawnee Lake.

Wait 3 months to see how that "awesome furniture" holds up.

Sorry but Neb Furniture Mart is crap. I would rather pay slightly more for much better quality.Seems good to me. I guess I will find out soon though.

[stlchiefs]

NFM doesn't only carry one brand so I'm not understanding how people are calling their stuff crap. There are thousands of square feet of furniture from various manufacturers all with multiple product lines. Maybe some people bought cheap crap, but I don't see how one can say everything they sell in the store is crap when they carry the same brands that other stores carry.

[Bugeater]

NFM doesn't only carry one brand so I'm not understanding how people are calling their stuff crap. There are thousands of square feet of furniture from various manufacturers all with multiple product lines. Maybe some people bought cheap crap, but I don't see how one can say everything they sell in the store is crap when they carry the same brands that other stores carry.

No no, all of eazyb's friends say it's crap so it's crap.

[Gonzo]

NFM Traps my moneys on a regular basis around here. But hey, it's a decent store.

[stlchiefs]

No no, all of eazyb's friends say it's crap so it's crap.

Sorry, I guess I just wasn't being logical in my thought process. :doh!:

[Coach]

Got my fridge, my 40" flat-screen LCD, and various of furniture from NFM. And we're only just 10 minutes away from there.

[BigRedChief]

I bought a couple of Lazy Boy recliners there last summer. I wouldn't normally consider Lazy Boy cheap. Still, I did have a problem with the thread coming out and a button got lost. But they (NFM) sent someone out to fix it. We also bought a coffee table and end table at that time. The tables have been solid and we got them for pretty cheap.

The cheap furniture is stuff like Ashley furniture. But I believe they have decent quality furniture, too.
I bought 3 Lazy Boy's and couldn't be happier.

[Coach]

Although, be aware that there are actually other companies that sell their products cheaper. For instance, the fridge that I bought from NFM, it was the same brand, same model, everything, that Home Depot was selling for $150 less.

I showed them that, and IIRC, not only they matched the price, they also took off an additional $50 off as well. So, do some scouting from other stores, and write down the brand and model number and their prices.

[morphius]

All of the stuff we bought from there when we moved into our house 9 years ago has held up just fine.
Yup, everything I've bought from there has held up very well, a lot of the stuff I have is over 10 years old.

[BWillie]

Although, be aware that there are actually other companies that sell their products cheaper. For instance, the fridge that I bought from NFM, it was the same brand, same model, everything, that Home Depot was selling for $150 less.

I showed them that, and IIRC, not only they matched the price, they also took off an additional $50 off as well. So, do some scouting from other stores, and write down the brand and model number and their prices.

Yeah, Home Depot really does a good job. As far as inside furniture, they don't have much to look at. But they will match almost anything, and lower THAT price by 10% even. Or maybe that is Lowes. I forget. Either way...

[KCChiefsMan]

I worked there for a little while in computer/camera sales. I hated it, big time. WARRANTY WARRANTY WARRANTY, SELL THE DAMN WARRANTY. That's all that matters. I could do it, made descent money but damn I couldn't stand it.

[BWillie]

I worked there for a little while in computer/camera sales. I hated it, big time. WARRANTY WARRANTY WARRANTY, SELL THE DAMN WARRANTY. That's all that matters. I could do it, made descent money but damn I couldn't stand it.

I thought you lived in Boston. What happened. Did you get fired? jk :)

[Sully]

I dont think we have one piece of furniture in our house that isn't from there. In addition to our fridge, dishwasher, and stove.

[KCChiefsMan]

I thought you lived in Boston. What happened. Did you get fired? jk :)

I moved to Boston, but I moved back to Lawrence about a year ago. No, I didn't get fired. I put my 2 weeks in after I found another job that I don't hate as much.

[BWillie]

I moved to Boston, but I moved back to Lawrence about a year ago. No, I didn't get fired. I put my 2 weeks in after I found another job that I don't hate as much.

Good call. Life is too short to hate what you do. I need to look into career therapy

[locomoulds]

The furniture is kind of cheap crap but other than that they are a pretty good store.


I own I high end furniture store and run into their buyers all the time at market. They do buy some of the same brands I do and they are good quality merchandise. They really make a killer margin cuase they only buy by the container and make around a 60% margin. So don't think they aren't making money...

[Phobia]

I would rather shop a smaller furniture store that is locally owned than put a bunch of money into NFM. That's just me though. This economy has me rethinking a lot of my buying decisions and shopping locally.

[ArrowheadHawk]

All I know is the stuff I bought looks to be the quality that I want. I hope it wowks out.
Posted via Mobile Device

[Bugeater]

I would rather shop a smaller furniture store that is locally owned than put a bunch of money into NFM. That's just me though. This economy has me rethinking a lot of my buying decisions and shopping locally.
Well for me they are locally owned. That and they've put everyone else in Omaha out of business over the years.

[Phobia]

Well for me they are locally owned. That and they've put everyone else in Omaha out of business over the years.

Sure, but I like to support the little guy, not make the rich richer. That having been said, I don't like to spend a lot on my crap so NFM isn't out of the question if I can't find a deal elsewhere.

[banyon]

Well for me they are locally owned. That and they've put everyone else in Omaha out of business over the years.

If by locally owned you mean owned by the 2nd wealthiest person in the world, then yes.

[Bugeater]

Sure, but I like to support the little guy, not make the rich richer. That having been said, I don't like to spend a lot on my crap so NFM isn't out of the question if I can't find a deal elsewhere.
I'd like to as well, but unfortunately there is no little guy in retail any more. He can't compete with big guy's buying power.

[Bugeater]

If by locally owned you mean owned by the 2nd wealthiest person in the world, then yes.
He lives in Omaha.

[ArrowheadHawk]

I guess the little guy better have a damn good business plan.
Posted via Mobile Device

[BigRedChief]

I would rather shop a smaller furniture store that is locally owned than put a bunch of money into NFM. That's just me though. This economy has me rethinking a lot of my buying decisions and shopping locally.
We did that before we went to NFM. That old furniture store in Lees Summit downtown? They were almost $200 more for thew same recliners. It would have cost us $600 to buy there instead of NFM.

[ArrowheadHawk]

I don't have anything against buying locally but in this economy you almost have to go for the better price which is usually the big guy.

[Buehler445]

I own I high end furniture store and run into their buyers all the time at market. They do buy some of the same brands I do and they are good quality merchandise. They really make a killer margin cuase they only buy by the container and make around a 60% margin. So don't think they aren't making money...

Cool. Thanks for the insight. I read somewhere that higher-end vendors that deal with Wal-Mart make their products crappier just to meet their margin standards. The specific example I heard was DeWalt putting significantly fewer windings in their motors than they would sell elsewhere and then wouldn't warranty them. I think Schwinn does the same thing because their warranty isn't consistent with bikes sold elsewhere. I was concerned about it with NFM, but it is good to hear they don't try to strongarm vendors into making shit.

I would rather shop a smaller furniture store that is locally owned than put a bunch of money into NFM. That's just me though. This economy has me rethinking a lot of my buying decisions and shopping locally.

Me too. Very much so. But at the same time it is ALWAYS what's best for me. Always. A lot of times, I'll forego cheap/chain shit so I can get the service I want. A lot of other times, though, it is very much in my best interest to take the best price if there are no advantages to buying from the small guy.

Sure, but I like to support the little guy, not make the rich richer. That having been said, I don't like to spend a lot on my crap so NFM isn't out of the question if I can't find a deal elsewhere.

I don't owe the little guy anything. The little guy has to make it worth my while to go to him. Most of the little guys that are around have earned it, but I'm not going to go to him just for the sake of NOT being corporate. All that does is damage my financial position. I may get some warm fuzzies, but I'm a soulless fuck and those don't hold a lot of value to me. However I do value good service if I need it.

If by locally owned you mean owned by the 2nd wealthiest person in the world, then yes.

Warren Buffet isn't the modeel of corparate greed. He probably lives in a crappier house than you. He's got lots of commas in his net worth numbers, but I am fairly certain he isn't a corporate tyrant. Dude just makes good decisions.

I'd like to as well, but unfortunately there is no little guy in retail any more. He can't compete with big guy's buying power.

This is very much the truth. Small guys have to fill a niche, most of the time that comes through service, but they HAVE TO compete on something other than price. And if they give me something I can't get elsewhere to make the value better than the big guy, I'll throw my business their way.

I don't have anything against buying locally but in this economy you almost have to go for the better price which is usually the big guy.

Exchange price with value, and you're golden. There are a ton of things small guys can do to get my business, but it has to be of value.

[banyon]

He lives in Omaha.

I know that. It just not what people usually mean when they say "locally owned". That usually means mom and pop, etc. Thought it was worth mentioning that buying at the Mart isn't exactly like buying at your downtown hardware store or barber shop. I would imagine most of their products are made in China or by people even more desparate in SE asia, right?

[Phobia]

We did that before we went to NFM. That old furniture store in Lees Summit downtown? They were almost $200 more for thew same recliners. It would have cost us $600 to buy there instead of NFM.

Which one? Above A Thyme for Everything?

[BigRedChief]

Which one? Above A Thyme for Everything?
Use to be where that BBQ place is now by the ice cream shop.

[Phobia]

I always give the little guy an opportunity to earn my business. Was buying some doors recently and wanted to let the little guy compete with Lowes. He was $40 higher and I know he didn't have that much in them. I offered same as Lowes and he told me to go to Lowes. Okay.

[Phobia]

Use to be where that BBQ place is now by the ice cream shop.

Oh - it's gone now then? Downtown LS is really nice. I'm kinda partial to Camerons and I really love Braata.

[Bugeater]

I know that. It just not what people usually mean when they say "locally owned". That usually means mom and pop, etc. Thought it was worth mentioning that buying at the Mart isn't exactly like buying at your downtown hardware store or barber shop. I would imagine most of their products are made in China or by people even more desparate in SE asia, right?
A couple weeks ago NFM delivered some furniture to a house I was working in, I noticed on the back it said it was made in friggin' Vietnam. Then again, even if there were any mom & pop furniture stores left, their stuff would probably be coming from the same places.

[banyon]

A couple weeks ago NFM delivered some furniture to a house I was working in, I noticed on the back it said it was made in friggin' Vietnam. Then again, even if there were any mom & pop furniture stores left, their stuff would probably be coming from the same places.

Unfortunately, that's probably true.

[Phobia]

A couple weeks ago NFM delivered some furniture to a house I was working in, I noticed on the back it said it was made in friggin' Vietnam. Then again, even if there were any mom & pop furniture stores left, their stuff would probably be coming from the same places.

Nah - North Carolina is the furniture capital of the U.S.

[Groves]

We did that before we went to NFM. That old furniture store in Lees Summit downtown? They were almost $200 more for thew same recliners. It would have cost us $600 to buy there instead of NFM.

This is the quandry we all feel at times. By golly, it deserves it's own thread. It's the off-season, folks.

[BigRedChief]

Oh - it's gone now then? Downtown LS is really nice. I'm kinda partial to Camerons and I really love Braata.
Yeah, it had been there for like 50 years or something like that.

[Marcu666]

Wao, Thats great!
Congradulation....
My dear do you have dining tables?
I want to buy it for my old house in new york.If you have,what is its price?I am waiting your reply.Thanks in advance

[blaise]

Wao. Haoly shit.

[Dunit35]

Haha. Nice

[gblowfish]

Real easy to get real broke in there in a real hurry...

[vailpass]

Do they sell rockin' chairs, corn cob pipes and bib over-alls too?

[MOhillbilly]

Do they sell rockin' chairs, corn cob pipes and bib over-alls too?

dont forget the bowl of complementary roaches at the front door & check out isle.

[Saulbadguy]

Real easy to get real broke in there in a real hurry...

No interest financing, ftw!

[Fish]

Do they sell rockin' chairs, corn cob pipes and bib over-alls too?

Hilarious stereotype. It's funny because everything related to Nebraska must look just like a corn farmer. Even furniture stores in Kansas. You are a funny guy.

[MOhillbilly]

Hilarious stereotype. It's funny because everything related to Nebraska must look just like a corn farmer. Even furniture stores in Kansas. You are a funny guy.

you know its true.

[bobbything]

I just got a couch and loveseat from there. 8 years ago I bought a coach and oversized chair. It has held up great and now occupies another living area in our house. I hate driving all the way out there, but they have so much to choose from.

Also, we got our bedroom set at Furniture Deal$, as well as two end tables for our living room. That place off 103rd and Metcalf. The selection isn't nearly as big, but they're less expensive than NFM, closer (to my house, anyway), and the furniture was solid. The only thing that sucks is that the salespeople will literally follow you around the store, lurking around every corner. I told the guy that if he didn't stop tailing me, I was going to drive out to NFM. He apologized and said that they're told to "keep an eye on the customer".

[vailpass]

Hilarious stereotype. It's funny because everything related to Nebraska must look just like a corn farmer. Even furniture stores in Kansas. You are a funny guy.

Sensitive much? You act like sitting on a rocking chair with a mason jar in your hand is a bad thing.

[vailpass]

No interest financing, ftw!

Real men pay cash. Enjoy being a pawn of big credit. I just bought a used row boat and three oars and paid for it with money from my own pocket!!

[vailpass]

dont forget the bowl of complementary roaches at the front door & check out isle.

LMAO gat damn.

[Saulbadguy]

Real men pay cash. Enjoy being a pawn of big credit. I just bought a used row boat and three oars and paid for it with money from my own pocket!!

I'm going to call you vail "three oars" pass from now on.

[vailpass]

I'm going to call you vail "three oars" pass from now on.

I've always wanted a Delta Tau name.

[Mr. Plow]

I'm looking for a list of cities they deliver to in KS....can't seem to find it.

[vailpass]

You can't sell leaf-tables and no chairs. Chairs, you got a dinette set. No chairs, you got dick!

[Dayze]

you think anyone would buy furniture from a place called "Unpainted Huffheins"?

[vailpass]

you think anyone would buy furniture from a place called "Unpainted Huffheins"?

:thumb:

[Fish]

Sensitive much? You act like sitting on a rocking chair with a mason jar in your hand is a bad thing.

LOL... sorry. Didn't mean to get all huffy over corn...

Sincerely,

http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/2162/bradwolfe03.jpg

[LiveSteam]

The NFM after the 75 tornado was done with it.

http://www.crh.noaa.gov/oax/archive/may1975/75dam15.jpg

http://www.horsburgh.com/images/cp14a_ed3.gif
Bastard started on our farm out in the pasture

[KCChiefsMan]

I used to work there and trust me, do not buy warranties or monster cables. They push the salesmen hard on those because its literally 75% profit for them after commision. But they do have good deals

[vailpass]

LOL... sorry. Didn't mean to get all huffy over corn...

Sincerely,

http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/2162/bradwolfe03.jpg

I detasseled my share when I was a kid, rogued beans too. Nothing prettier than rolling acres of crops in full on an August day, nowhere more peaceful.

[Stanley Nickels]

I used to work there and trust me, do not buy warranties or monster cables. They push the salesmen hard on those because its literally 75% profit for them after commision. But they do have good deals

Yeah, Monster cables are something like 1,000% markup.

Look, HDMI is a specific quality. It can't be called HDMI if it doesn't output that specific resolution and audio (1080p and 5.1). Do what I do, and go to monoprice.com Cheap, great cables.

[LiveSteam]

I used to work there and trust me, do not buy warranties or monster cables. They push the salesmen hard on those because its literally 75% profit for them after commision. But they do have good deals

Ever work with my lil cuz? Jimmy Keslar

[vailpass]

I'm going to call you vail "three oars" pass from now on.

LMAO "three oars and none in the water"? I don't know who did it but I like it.

[Pitt Gorilla]

I would rather shop a smaller furniture store that is locally owned than put a bunch of money into NFM. That's just me though. This economy has me rethinking a lot of my buying decisions and shopping locally.This. We buy all of our stuff from a local store. The prices are virtually the same.

[LiveSteam]

Hear is some Nebraska furniture for ya

http://photos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/254762_2208675624484_1475253333_32456089_126092_s.jpg

[Braincase]

Just bought two sectionals there, one for the kids for the basement (less expensive) and complete Manwah leather sectional with the motorized recliner for the family room. Waiting on delivery now and the beginning of football season... love me some integrated cup holders...

[TimeForWasp]

Hey, Garden at least has a Target and a Home Depot. Dodge is Walmart or Bust.

Marshall Dillon must not want any of those big stores in his town.:hmmm:

[vailpass]

This. We buy all of our stuff from a local store. The prices are virtually the same.

Just don't ever go to a small town in Mexico and let your wife discover they are disbanding the mission house and selling off the wooden beams, iron fence and wrought gates, 800 pound dining hall table with equally heavy ass chairs, massive mirrors and sconces, furniture and much assorted 300 year old wooden things.
Because if you do that, your wife is likely to get you to buy it all then go back across the border to rent a moving truck and come back to load it all up.
Which will turn into it's own story of hired hands and various bullshit.
Believe me.

[Extra Point]

NFM sells cheap junk. You get what you pay for. Their junk is one step above Target.

[ThatRaceCardGuy]

That place is a trap. I spent about 4 k (cash ) there in the past 3 months....and I still want more lol....

[vailpass]

NFM sells cheap junk. You get what you pay for. Their junk is one step above Target.

A midwest Ikea?

[Bugeater]

NFM sells cheap junk. You get what you pay for. Their junk is one step above Target.
That has already been covered in this thread.

[bevischief]

It is legal crack.

[BigRedChief]

NFM sells cheap junk. You get what you pay for. Their junk is one step above Target.Back in 2004, I got some huge overstuffed leather rocker recliner Lazy-Boy's for $400 a piece and a 54in HDTV put it on their credit card without any interest for 2 years.

Still have the chairs and TV. Both are still in great shape. No complaints and nothing but praise for the good deals at NFM from me.

[ThatRaceCardGuy]

Back in 2004, I got some huge overstuffed leather rocker recliner Lazy-Boy's for $400 a piece and a 54in HDTV put it on their credit card without any interest for 2 years.

Still have the chairs and TV. Both are still in great shape. No complaints and nothing but praise for the good deals at NFM from me.

I bought my first flat screen there and my living room set 6 years ago...both in good shape.

[Saulbadguy]

NFM sells cheap junk. You get what you pay for. Their junk is one step above Target.

They do sell cheap crap, but they do carry name brand stuff as well, at a discount.

[kcfan82]

I remember going to the one in Omaha as a kid and seeing Mrs. B there.

Everything these days is a cheap POS made in China.

If you need something hand made, find an Amish community.

[LiveSteam]

Today, I’d like to tell you the remarkable story of Rose Blumkin, a Russian immigrant who never spent a day in school, arrived penniless and built the largest home furnishings store in the United States.

Blumkin was born to poverty in 1893. Her father was a Rabbi with little income and her mother worked long hours running a small grocery store to support the family of eight children. At the age of six, tiny Rose began working in the store to help her.

At 20, Rose married Isadore Blumkin, who was also poor. So they could have a better life, he went to the U.S. to get a start but before she could join him, World War 1 broke out and it would be three years before the couple could reunite.

In 1919, they settled in Omaha and struggled to get by. He ran a secondhand-clothing store and a pawnshop. Rose helped him with the clothing store and to supplement their modest income she used her basement to sell furniture. They learned English from their four children.

Rose knew first hand the difficult circumstances the vast number of poor and struggling people of the 1930’s endured and saw a business opportunity. Despite the Great Depression, she acted.

In 1937 Blumkin was nearly 44 years old but she borrowed $500 from her brother and opened a store in the basement of her husband’s shop. She called it the Nebraska Furniture Mart and her motto was, “Sell cheap, tell the truth, don’t cheat nobody.”

Blumkin’s business grew by offering merchandise at rock bottom prices. At times when she didn’t have enough inventory, she hauled her family’s own furniture into the store and sold it.

Her big competitors deeply resented her undercutting their prices and pressured manufacturers not to sell to her. This didn’t stop Mrs. B as she came to be called. She’d visit distant retailers and buy their excess inventories at sharply reduced prices, sometimes for pennies on the dollar.

As her store kept growing, Mrs. B, applied to the banks for credit but banks scoffed at her as an illiterate immigrant. She resented these “big shots” treating her this way as she had to operate from cash generated from selling her merchandise and from credit she got from her suppliers.

Despite this lack of liquidity, by working seven days a week, 10 hours a day, selling a high volume of furniture at very low prices, Mrs. B built her store into a success.

Something else also made it successful. Sometimes when a family needed furniture and didn’t have enough money, rather then let them leave disappointed, Mrs. B quietly cut the price for them. This was a nice thing to do but it was also wise of her because it built repeat trade as that family would return time and again and her business grew.

But in 1951 Mrs. B’s store suddenly hit the wall.

This happens to many fast growing businesses because cash may not come in quickly enough to cover the cost of a larger inventory or other expenses. Mrs. B got in a cash bind and couldn’t pay her suppliers.

Confronted with the loss of her business and all that she had worked so hard for, she took bold action. She rented Omaha’s City Auditorium, ran a massive sale, blew out $250,000 in inventory in three frantic days and paid off her suppliers.

After that, she operated strictly from cash as her store grew at a carefully measured pace into the largest home furnishings store in the United States, making her extremely successful.

Then one day in 1983, long-time customer and legendary investor Warren Buffett came into the store to see her. After wading his way through acres of bed-room sets, tables and chairs, lamps and rugs, he spotted Mrs. B.

Though she was nearly 90 years old, she remained a bundle of energy, using her electric scooter to zip up and down the aisles as she quoted prices and deliveries to customers, advised her staff and directed where and how to display merchandise.

Buffett had enormous respect for what Mrs. B had achieved and he wanted to buy the Nebraska Furniture Mart. He asked if she would consider selling it and when she said, “Yes,” he asked how much she wanted.

“$60 million,” replied Mrs. B. After a brief conversation, she agreed to sell 90%, with her family retaining 10% and they shook hands on the deal. Because of his respect for her integrity and her business acumen, he made this offer without auditing her books or inventory. Tax returns showed the business made $15 million a year pretax and that satisfied him.

Buffett had a one-page agreement prepared and Mrs. B, who could barely read English and did not write in it, made a mark at the bottom to signify her approval. A few days later, Buffett gave her a check for payment in full.

To close the sale, Mrs. B insisted that she remain the boss and continue to work seven days a week, 10 hours a day, as she had long done. Buffett hardily agreed and she remained active in business for the rest of her 104 years.

Success Tip of the Week:As Rose Blumkin showed us, a lack of a formal education need not prevent business success. The key for her and for any of us is to have passion for what we do and to be alert so that we absorb the crucial knowledge around us.

[Saulbadguy]

tl;dr

[Al Bundy]

I remember going to the one in Omaha as a kid and seeing Mrs. B there.

Everything these days is a cheap POS made in China.

If you need something hand made, find an Amish community.

Crate & Barrel sells American made furniture.