Furniture Magnate, Philanthropist, Johnny Janosik dies at 90

July 5, 2016  by in Industry, Obituaries   

The native of Hopewell, Virginia, and World War II veteran turned a

TV repair shop in downtown Laurel into one of the biggest furniture businesses in the country, registering tens of millions of dollars in sales annually.

Johnny Janosik World of Furniture boasts that it's the largest furniture store on the Eastern Shore. It operates three locations, two in Dover and one in Laurel.

Janosik was the grandson of a Slovakian immigrant who grew up in a tar-paper shack. He joined the Navy during World War II and was injured when a suicide bomber crashed into the USS Louisville, according to his obituary.

After the war, he graduated from Valpariso Technical Institute and in 1953 opened a television repair shop in a small storefront in Laurel.

The business, now selling furniture, went on to move into a renovated chicken house along Route 13. Its perch along the highway lent itself to the company's slogan at the time: "The Longest Store on the Shore with the Shortest Prices."

In 2006, the store moved into its present location in a 180,000-square-foot showroom at 13 and Trussum Pond Road.

Janosik also was a noted philanthropist. In 2005, he was named the fourth recipient of the Thomas C. Maloney Civic Award. Janosik and his wife and business partner, Mary Louise, were involved in many activities in Laurel, including the Laurel Public Library, the Laurel Redevelopment Corp., Hope House and Good Samaritans.

He also was involved in the Peninsula Regional Foundation, Epworth Christian School and Delmarva Christian High School.

Janosik is survived by his wife as well as three children, nine grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

The funeral is planned for Thursday, July 7.