Appliance Factory & Mattress Kingdom, the Denver-based big-box specialty chain, has opened its third Midwest location, bringing its total store count to 19.
The new showroom, which occupies a former La-Z-Boy Furniture Gallery in Cincinnati, Ohio, follows prior forays into Columbus and Terre Haute, Ind.
CEO Chuck Ewing said the out-of-state expansion is intended to exploit the marketplace void left by hhgregg, the Indianapolis-based CE, appliance and bedding chain that shut its doors last year.
“I want the residents of Cincinnati to know, we’re not just leasing buildings and testing the market, we’re buying buildings, employing local community members and making long-term strategic investments,” he said. “This market has been underserved since hhgregg closed their doors. We’re going to fill that void.”
Ewing founded the company, formerly Appliance Factory Outlet, out of his garage in 1986. It specializes in closeouts, uncrated merchandise and other opportunistic buys to offer consumers “aggressively discounted” goods, and has since racked up $1 billion in cumulative white-good sales, the retailer said.
The chain would later add Mattress Kingdom sleep centers and branch out into contract appliance sales, in-home appliance repair, home remodeling and digital signage.
It joined the NATM Buying Corp. in 2017, and this year claimed the 28th spot on TWICE’s Top 50 Major Appliance Retailers Report.
The new Cincinnati store was acquired in August. Staffed by former hhgregg employees, it soft-opened on Oct. 1 and is scheduled to hold a grand opening on Oct. 14.
