Gary Evans
\nEDMOND, Okla. \u00e2\u20ac\u201d Charles Ballenger wanted to open his new Ballengers store here with products that would be different from other
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\n retailers in the market, and that would draw customers to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153lifestyle\u00e2\u20ac\u009d furniture depicting travel and adventure.<\/p>\n
The veteran retailer turned to Highland House and the manufacturer\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s \u00e2\u20ac\u0153shops\u00e2\u20ac\u009d concept, which showcases groups of furniture based on locations in Europe \u00e2\u20ac\u201d England, France, Italy and, most recently, Scandinavia.<\/p>\n
Ballengers is in a new, upscale, 10 million-square-foot shopping center built by Ballenger and his brother to attract like-minded tenants, including upscale restaurants, fine clothing stores and specialty shops.<\/p>\n
After 30 years in the business, Ballenger wanted to stock his store with merchandise that would attract affluent homeowners from this north Oklahoma City suburb, where houses run from $500,000 to $1.5 million and McMansions are common.<\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153The decision to establish a store that would feature this kind of merchandise was reached after quite a bit of review,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153For over two years, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve watch Tom (Staats, Highland House\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s president) and what he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s putting together. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a tightly focused group. Tom has put a lot of study into what he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s done.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n
The 16,000-square-foot Ballengers, which recently had a soft opening, is among a growing number of retailers that, amid a sea of sameness, is looking for something different that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s easily understood by consumers. Perhaps more important is that it must be highly salable.<\/p>\n
Highland House, the Century Furniture division long known as a traditional furniture company, took that direction nearly 10 years ago when it introduced Cotswold Cottage, a romantic group reminiscent of an English manor.<\/p>\n
That struck a chord with consumers, and spawned Rue de Provence, a cottage-style French offering with colorful fabrics and antique finishes; Le Cinque Terre, inspired by the coastal Italian villages of the same name; and the latest, Scandinavian Simplicity, a clean contemporary group introduced in April.<\/p>\n
All include case goods, upholstery and occasional, and are grouped under the banner of European Excursions. Each market, a few new pieces typically are added to each group, but the aim is to keep the groups tightly focused, with each piece carefully selected.<\/p>\n
Highland House\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s shops concept is catching on with a number of retailers, who like the Excursions story and its niche in the marketplace.<\/p>\n
Luke Depuis, who describes himself as a designer and entrepreneur, owns Home Comfort on Lake Winnipesauke in Center Harbor, N.H., and says he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s had success mixing the eclectic Excursion pieces with real antiques.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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