Room & Board to open Los Angeles-area store
By Clint Engel -- Furniture Today, May 26, 2008
Culver City, Ca. — Top 100 company Room & Board has leased 40,000 square feet of space for a store here, its second in southern California and first and probably only one for the Los Angeles area.
Mark Miller, chief financial officer for the nine-store Minneapolis-based chain, said the retailer plans to open a two-level showroom in the Plaza at Culver Studios on Culver Boulevard. It will probably open in early 2010.
He said the retailer of mid-priced, classic contemporary home furnishings has built a customer base in many markets through its phone and online business and is seeking locations for stores in several metro areas, including Washington, D.C.; Boston; Philadelphia; Seattle; Portland, Ore.; Austin, Texas; Miami; Ann Arbor, Mich.; and Atlanta.
Miller said the retailer is likely to open one store before Culver City, but could not predict where. He said the focus is on Washington, Seattle and Boston.
Room & Board, led by John Gabbert, has two stores in Minneapolis/St. Paul, three in the Chicago area and one each in Denver, New York, San Francisco and Santa Ana, Calif.
Room & Board is one of the few Top 100 companies that posted strong growth last year, increasing its sales more than 10% to $230 million, according to Furniture/Today estimates.
