Daily News
From Home Furnishing Business
Bob's Set to Open 8th New Jersey Store
May 6,
2014 by in Furniture Retailing, Industry, Store Openings 
Bob’s Discount Furniture will celebrate the May 22 grand opening of its new Freehold, N.J., store by donating $14,000 to local schools and community organizations.
The store is Bob's eighth in New Jersey and second to open in the state this year.
The new 29,950-square-foot store, located at 500 Trotters Way, Unit No. 2 in the Freehold Raceway Village shopping center, is expected to add 28 new jobs to the local economy, including 18 sales associates. It will be managed by Michael Klapkin, who has been with Bob’s for more than a decade and previously managed the company’s store in Woodbridge, N.J.
“New Jersey is becoming an increasingly important market for our company,” said Bob Kaufman, Bob’s president emeritus and co-founder. “This is our eighth store in the Garden State and we look forward to bringing great furniture at the value prices we are known for to Freehold and the surrounding communities.”
When the new Freehold store opens next month, Manchester, Conn.-based Bob’s will have 51 stores in 11 states (Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Virginia).
“Our new Freehold store gives us an opportunity to bring quality choice and value to more customers,” said Kevin Parker, zone vice president for Bob’s Discount Furniture. “Freehold is a strong retail location that positions us to serve the people of western Monmouth County as we continue to look for further expansion opportunities.”
A grand opening celebration for the new store will start at 9:45 a.m. on Thursday, May 22, with a ribbon cutting by local dignitaries and Bob Kaufman and complimentary refreshments served from the store’s cafe. Grand-opening festivities, including balloons, face painting and other children’s entertainment, will extend through the Memorial Day weekend.
To show its commitment to the communities served by the new store, Bob’s began donating to local schools and non-profits in April. By the end of grand opening weekend, Bob’s will have donated a total of $14,000 to those organizations.
Including these donations, Bob’s has given more than $55,000 in checks and in-kind contributions to New Jersey schools and community organizations since the start of 2013. These donations came from the company and its Bob’s Outreach program, which supports schools and non-profit groups in the communities where it operates, as well as from customer donations to collection jars located in the cafes found in every Bob’s store.