Woodley’s in Longmont going strong after 20 years

Brothers found fine furniture market in malls

LONGMONT — With a last name like Woodley, the wooden-furniture business seems a good fit for brothers Patrick and Michael. But the Woodley surname gave them little advantage as they struggled to get their now-flourishing furniture company off the ground.

Before their seven-store Front Range furniture empire was even conceived, the brothers built and sold waterbeds for Denver-based Natural Wood Products. When the company was ready to go out of business, the brothers saw the opportunity to buy the equipment.

“It wasn’t easy,” Michael Woodley said. “In 1979, our Small Business Administration loan rate was 24 percent.”

After obtaining the $50,000 loan, plus another $50,000 loan from Michael’s father-in-law, Woodley’s Fine Furniture was born in Longmont. But the brothers had more hurdles to scale.

“The economy in Colorado was weak,” Woodley said. “We started it thinking we’d just wholesale waterbed furniture. It wasn’t enough to get the job done.”

Expanding into conventional beds, other furniture and eventually opening retail stores made all the difference.

“Things started turning around when we opened our first mall store in Twin Peaks Mall,” Woodley said. “It was 560 square feet and had a partition to divide the showroom from the office.”

Empire expands

Shortly thereafter, Woodley’s opened a location in Westminster, then one in Littleton. Today, Woodley’s also operates in Denver, Colorado Springs, Fort Collins and in a second Littleton store.

“It’s unheard of for furniture to be in the mall,” Woodley said. “What you pay for rent doesn’t matter if it’s a percentage of sales.”

By Woodley’s third year, the business had earned nearly $1 million. Michael Woodley declined to disclose current revenue, but he said, “In the last few years, we’ve done well.”

Although sales have declined by 2 percent in 2001, Woodley isn’t concerned.

“We’re close to being one of the top 100 furniture retailers in the country,” he said. “If you’re going to get ahead in business, it’s time to take advantage of (a slow economy) and make your company better.”

The company has added two entertainment centers and four bedroom sets to its own Woodley’s line, which accounts for one-third of the furniture sold by the chain.

The company recently started selling area rugs and lighting in its Fort Collins store. Woodley’s bought out Fresco Lighting in Fort Collins with a plan to sell much of the Fresco stock, remodel Fresco’s retail space, and use the lighting to “make our furniture look its best,” Woodley said. By making the furniture displays look like a regular home with lamps and accessories, he thinks the store should do well in selling lighting, he said.

New Longmont home?

In Longmont, Woodley’s may soon have a new home. Michael Woodley is vying for the Twin Peaks anchor space formerly occupied by Gart Sports. “It’s a perfect time to make deals while the economy is slower,” he said. “We’re proud of what we do, and we have some of the nicest furniture available.”

A five-piece dining set can cost from $600 to $3,000, depending on the style and type of wood used. Oak, maple, walnut and cherry are the featured types.

“(The furniture) is worth more, and you’re going to be happier with it,” Woodley said.

Customer Kathleen Weinmeister of Loveland agreed. “I’ve bought a lot of things from them,” she said. “Their quality makes them different.”

One of Michael Woodley’s biggest challenges is keeping his nearly 240 employees happy and with the company. “It’s important to have good people,” he said.

Customer service is what drew Jean Trimer of Thornton to return to Woodley’s.

“I had purchased an entertainment center there, and then a sleigh bed,” she said. “Their service and delivery time, I give them high marks.”

One day several years ago, Woodley was listening to troubleshooter Tom Martino’s nationally syndicated radio program, which can be heard on Denver radio station KHOW-AM.

His heart stopped when he heard Woodley’s mentioned.

Fortunately for Michael Woodley, the caller wasn’t one of Martino’s usual listeners spouting complaints about shabby service and scams. In fact, “She didn’t let Tom get a word in edgewise for about five minutes” as she praised the furniture store, Woodley said.

“She told him how we had taken care of her,” Woodley said. “It was the best testimonial I had ever heard.”

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