Jerome's set to open 43,000-square foot store in Corona
Retailer says store size will facilitate sharp displays, better turns
Clint Engel -- Furniture Today, June 18, 2010
CORONA, Calif. — San Diego-based Jerome's will open its second new store of the year next month here in the Crossings at Corona shopping center.
The Top 100 company, which opened a showroom about 25 miles south in Murrieta, Calif. in February, said the nearly 43,000-square-foot Corona store will soft open July 1 and grand open July 3.
Lee Goodman, president and CEO of the currently seven-store Southern California chain chain, wouldn't disclose projected sales for store, but said the two newest locations will help Jerome's grow annual sales to a run rate of about $100 million. The retailer is No. 62 on Furniture/Today's Top 100 with 2009 estimated sales of $79.1 million.
The Corona store, a former Wickes showroom, is like Jerome's 40,000-square-foot Murrieta store in its smaller-than-average footprint for Jerome's, Goodman said. (Its largest store is about 93,000 square feet and Jerome's overall average selling space is about 70,000 square feet). Jerome's finds the smaller stores make for sharper displays, and the narrower assortment of merchandise is leading to better inventory turns, he added.
"It's exciting to open our doors in Corona," Goodman said in a release. "Many members of the community have been shopping our Murrieta showroom, and now we'll be even closer neighbors."
In both cases, the promotional to midpriced Jerome's is able to maintain its same-day delivery services from its Rancho Bernardo, Calif., distribution center - something Goodman said was important in planning the retailer's expansion moves this year, its first since 2000.
The fact that the Corona store was a former Wickes and the Murrieta store was a Levitz has been a big advantage, he said. Both buildings were left very clean and required little in the way of improvements, which led to quick openings. In Corona, for example, Jerome's signed the lease June 11, and will be open within three weeks of that day. Goodman estimated the start-up investment will be about $200,000 vs. about $2 million he'd expect for a more extensive build-out which could take three to four months before the store is ready for business.
"Not having to carry that cost and the additional profits from the revenue you pick up quicker - it all helps," he said.
Among the Corona store's features will be a "Kidz to Teens" youth area, leather, living room, dining room, entertainment and home office departments as well as a clearance center and a Jerome's Dream Shop bedding departments featuring mattresses from Diamond and Serta.
Other key suppliers include Michael Nicholas, Najarian, Man Wah/Cheers and Jofran.
Jerome's was honored June 7 with the Lifetime Achievement award by the City of Hope during its West Cost Golf and Tennis Tournament, recognizing the retailer's more than 50 years of service to the community, philanthropic contributions and business accomplishments. The event raised nearly $500,000 for the City of Hope efforts in cancer research, treatment and education.
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