Rick Wilson hopes to replicate the small business success of his Fairbury Furniture store with another location in Cissna Park.
Cissna Park Furniture and Flooring has officially opened following renovation and building updates. It all started when someone came into the Fairbury store letting Wilson know the Cissna Park store was available and that he should check it out.
“To make a long story short, we went ahead and took the plunge,” recalls Wilson.
Wilson considers Cissna Park, a great community with great people who keep their town up and want to see businesses succeed. The town supports the “shop local” movement, much like Fairbury. Wilson considers it a great opportunity to be located there as well.
In addition to furniture, the new store offers all types of flooring options.
The Wilsons have owned Fairbury Furniture for about seven years now. Norm Rittenhouse originally operated the store but passed away then, Greg Benoit moved it to the former Walton’s Department Store building in downtown Fairbury before he closed it. The Wilsons opened it as a new store with the same name.
“I love Fairbury. It’s a great community,” observed Wilson. “People are great and very supportive.”
Current Fairbury Furniture customers come from as far as Bloomington, Kankakee, and Pontiac. Wilson feels his team has created a great place to shop.
“We like to think of it as an experience different than your typical department store.”
The Fairbury location features around 20,000 square feet of showroom space, including the mattress and bedding store just down the street.
“One of the biggest things we do is custom orders because a lot of our brands have a lot of fabric selections,” said Wilson.
W.C. Market is located within Fairbury Furniture and is managed by Kathy Kupferschmid. According to Wilson, the store within the store creates a great atmosphere, especially around the holidays.
“She does a great job.”
Fairbury Furniture is located at 100 West Locust Street in downtown Fairbury, while Cissna Park Furniture and Flooring is open at 112 S. 2nd Street in Cissna Park.
