Havertys Sets 3 New Markets

September 4, 2014  by in Business Strategy, Furniture Retailing, Industry   

The company's has plans for stores in Rogers, Ark., Waco, Texas, and southeast Florida.

The 29,700-square-foot Arkansas store will open in the growing Pinnacle Hills Promenade shopping center that currently includes a number of home furnishings stores like Sleep Number by Select Comfort Pottery Barn and Williams-Sonoma. The store is set to open in the second quarter of 2015.

The 31,500-square-foot Waco store will be part of a new phase of Central Texas Marketplace, which currently includes an Ashley HomeStore, Mattress Firm and Pier 1 Imports as home furnishings retailers. The Waco store will open during the third quarter of 2015.

The retailer is expanding and strengthening its position in southeast Florida. With current stores in Boca Raton, Fla., and the Sawgrass area, Havertys previously announced a store in Coconut Creek, Fla., which is slated to open later this year. The retailer is expanding into this area with a 40,000-square-foot store in Fort lauderdale, Fla., scheduled to open in the second quarter of 2015.

"The diversity of locations of these new stores highlights one of Havertys' competitive advantages, the ability to merchandise and flow product for regional tastes and needs," said Clarence Smith, chairman, president and CEO.

Havertys also reported that its written business for the third quarter to date of 2014 is up about 3.1 percent over the same period last year. Written same-store sales are up by about 3.5 percent. The company attributes the increase to a "record setting" Labor Day holiday weekend during which total written business increased by about 7.4 percent over the same four-day period last year.