Slumberland entering Kansas
By Clint Engel -- Furniture Today, January 31, 2005
Wichita, Kan. — Top 100 company Slumberland is opening its first two Kansas stores here, with plans to fill out the market with more units later.
The retailer is launching the two company-owned stores simultaneously on Jan. 29 — one on the west side of town on Emerson Street and other in the east on East Kellogg Place.
Each will have roughly 35,000-square-foot showrooms with attached warehouses, and will be supported by Slumberland's big distribution center in Beresford, S.D.
Ken Larson, CEO of 90-store Slumberland, said the company is looking forward to becoming part of the community.
Slumberland, which has been opening five to 10 stores a year recently, sees the Wichita stores as a springboard for franchise stores in smaller towns around Wichita, but in the same broad advertising market.
This year, the retailer plans to open at least 10 stores, and while most will be in other markets — including a store in Cape Girardeau, Mo. — "I'd be surprised if there weren't any additional (Kansas stores opening this year)," said Kenny Larson, vice president of marketing for the Little Canada, Minn.-based company.
"We're committed to growing contiguously without big geographic jumps," he said. Kansas was a natural extension, he said, noting it borders Nebraska, where the company already has stores.
Kansas will be Slumberland's 10th state, joining Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, the Dakotas and Wyoming, in addition to Nebraska. It entered Wyoming in 2003 with a store in Bozeman.
Kenny Larson said he sees the opportunity eventually to add up to 12 franchised stores in the greater Wichita area, but wouldn't disclose potential markets. Neither would Slumberland disclose projected sales for the new Kansas stores or for the chain this year, although Larson said the overall increase is expected to be more than 10%.
Ranked No. 24 on Furniture/Today's survey of Top 100 U.S. furniture stores, Slumberland did an estimated $305.4 million at 85 stores in 2003, up nearly 11% from the year before.
This past year, the company opened five stores, in Red Wing and Owatonna, Minn.; Kearney, Neb.; Billings, Mont.; and Champaign, Ill. Thirty-two of its 90 stores are company owned.
The family-owned Slumberland, launched in 1967 as a bedding and La-Z-Boy specialty store, has evolved into a full-line operator carrying bedroom, dining room, living room, home office and entertainment furniture.
Last year it rolled out a new store format that, among other things, features lifestyle displays and a greater emphasis on accessories — a big departure for the company, Larson said.
Key suppliers include La-Z-Boy, Klaussner, Natuzzi, Thornwood and Sealy and Simmons in bedding. Slumberland also carries a growing mix of private-label imported case goods.
Wichita grand-opening festivities will benefit the local arm of Habitat for Humanity, with customers who donate $10 or more receiving a Slumberland "shopping card" for values up to $100. With additional company contributions, the retailer expects to raise at least $50,000 for the charity, Larson said.
