Whitley Furniture Galleries
Wake County, and Eastern North Carolina | |
Website | whitleygalleries |
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Whitley Furniture Galleries (abbreviated as Whitley Galleries) was a former
Founded as the Zebulon Supply Company in 1909 by R.J. Whitley, the business was passed down to his son C.V. Whitley upon his death in 1924. Under C.V., the business, which before had been a general supplies store, began to specialize in furniture. This product specialization, alongside its location in a crossroads town, large floor space, and good business practices, helped the business survive the Great Depression. Radio advertising and giveaways helped make the business one of the town's most successful businesses, and the county's largest furniture store. In January 2022, the business announced its closure after 113 years of operations, citing a lack of a fifth generation to carry on the family business. The eight buildings which made up the galleries were put on sale for $5,299,000.
History
Founding and growth
Whitley Galleries was one of Zebulon's oldest business firms,[1] beginning operations in 1909 as the Zebulon Supply Company, with R.J. Whitley as the owner and president.[2] R.J.'s son, C. Vaiden Whitley[1] (going only by C.V. Whitley), later began working for his father's business in 1916, and took over as president upon his death in 1924.[3] Upon assuming control of the business, C.V. reorganized the broad product range of the supply store towards primarily furniture, as he believed "while furniture styles also change, [it is] nowhere near as quickly as do styles in ladies coats and dresses", as an example of a product he no longer would sell for this reason.[4] Likewise, Zebulon Supply Company eventually changed its name to Whitley Furniture Company in 1946 to reflect their new product specialization.[5]
A 1937 article by the newspaper The State claimed the galleries were probably "the biggest business enterprise you can find anywhere in the state in a town approximating the town of Zebulon", in contrast to other struggling small-town businesses during the
Third and fourth generation ownership
After taking over in 1959, Whitley and Estes saw continued success with the business. In the store's adverts from this time, Whitley advertised themselves to be "
In 1979, the business once again changed names, this time from Whitley Furniture Company to Whitley Furniture Galleries.[11] In 1993, Nancy and Amos retired, passing down the business to their son Charles and his sister Nelle.[12] The business had the largest furniture stock in the Research Triangle until its closing in 2022.[2]
Closure
On 18 January 2022, the furniture galleries announced their closure after 113 years of operations.
At its closure, the furniture galleries spanned across the whole W. Vance St. city block consisting of eight buildings[a] in downtown Zebulon.[15] The buildings covered an area of 65,463 sq ft (6,081.7 m2) or 1.58 acres (0.64 ha), and were put up for sale at a price of $5,299,000.[15] Tom Liddell, Senior VP of Planned Furniture Promotions, with whom the business partnered to sell the buildings, commented the building's proximity to Raleigh presented "tremendous re-development opportunity" alongside the galleries' "historical significance".[12]
Product and services
While the business was still the Zebulon Supply Company, their product varied broadly with no specialization. Crops, livestock, groceries, farm machinery, hardware, and furniture were all sold, with some of their bigger products like groceries and furniture having their own departments within the store.[1] After specializing in furniture retailing, however, their inventory reflected the change, with home decor products including dining room and bedroom suites, seating, lamps,[6] mirrors, beds, chests, desks, china cabinets, sideboards, wall systems, and entertainment units all being sold.[16] Product was often sourced from smaller, local companies, but some larger brands including Barcalounger, Bassett Furniture,[2] and La-Z-Boy were also sold.[6]
Some services the business offered included complete interior design[7] and delivery within 100 miles of Zebulon, allowing their product to reach the wider Eastern Carolina market.[17]
Leadership
At the beginning of operations, the business started with only three salesmen.[18] The number of employees later grew to where multiple product departments requiring individual managers was needed. These departments existed under Zebulon Supply Company to better manage their larger range of products, but were likely dissolved after their product specialization to furniture.[1][4] In terms of ownership, four generations of Whitleys took turns as president of the business. The generation of the family, the owner's name, the co-owner's name (if one), and the years they operated the business are displayed in the table below.[2][12]
Gen | Owner | Co-owner | Starting year | Ending year |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | R.J. Whitley | None | 1909 | 1924 |
2 | C.V. Whitley | None | 1924 | 1959 |
3 | Nancy Whitley | Amos Estes (husband) | 1959 | 1993 |
4 | Charles Whitley Estes | Nelle Carroll (sister) | 1993 | 2022 |
References
Notelist
Citations
- ^ Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d e f g Dolder, Lars (January 26, 2022). "NC furniture store closing after over a century and 4 generations of family business". The News & Observer. Archived from the original on February 4, 2022. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
- ^ a b In 1916, C.V. Whitley joined his father, R.J. Whitley in the firm, and became its president and General Manager upon his father's death in 1924 (Plaque). Zebulon, North Carolina. Archived from the original on December 25, 2023. Retrieved December 20, 2023 – via a photograph in the History section of zebulonbuildings.com.
- ^ a b c d e f "Just A Country Storekeeper". The State. Vol. 5, no. 9. Raleigh, North Carolina. July 31, 1937. pp. 1–2, 22. Archived from the original on December 25, 2023. Retrieved December 20, 2023 – via a newspaper scan in the History section of zebulonbuildings.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- ^ Newspapers.com.
- ^ Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d e Lester, Thomas (January 18, 2022). "Whitley Furniture Galleries announces end of run". Furniture Today. Archived from the original on December 25, 2023. Retrieved December 25, 2023.
- ^ a b Zarcone, Patrick (January 18, 2022). "113-year-old Zebulon furniture store to shut down, sell buildings". WNCN. Archived from the original on December 25, 2023. Retrieved December 25, 2023.
- ^ a b Bell, Alexis (February 21, 2022). "Family-owned furniture store closing after 113 years". Spectrum News. Archived from the original on December 25, 2023. Retrieved December 25, 2023.
- ^ a b c "Retail Buildings For Sale | Whitley Furniture Galleries Buildings". zebulonbuildings.com. Archived from the original on December 25, 2023. Retrieved December 23, 2023.
- Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.