Top 100 retailer Steinhafels will enter Merrillville, Ind. in 2025, adding to its store count in the greater Chicago market. Image courtesy of Steinhafels.
WAUKESHA, Wis. — For its seventh store in the greater Chicagoland market, Top 100 retailer Steinhafels is venturing into northwest Indiana.
The Waukesha, Wis.-based, employee-owned retailer revealed plans for its next store in the market in Merrillville, Ind., which will come after the opening of its Orland Park, Ill., store that is anticipated for later this year. President Andrew Steinhafel told Furniture Today that bringing Merrillville into the fold completes the plan to encircle the market. This store, which will be Steinhafels’ 16th, is slated to open in 2025.
“This is the completion of the full ring around the Chicagoland market from the northern suburbs of Chicago to the northwest portion of Indiana, we have most of the market covered in some way,” Steinhafel said. “There still remains significant opportunity in the Chicago market, but we feel this completes that ring around Chicago.”
While Merrillville is in Indiana, it’s what one would consider a bedroom community with many of its residents commuting into Chicago. The new store will be served by Steinhafels’ Bolingbrook, Ill. distribution center.
The 50,000-square-foot showroom, located in Merrillville Plaza at 1600 E. 80th Avenue, is a former home of Art Van Furniture and The Roomplace, so converting it to a Steinhafels won’t be as arduous as other renovations.
“It’s got great frontage, great windows and good visibility,” Steinhafel said. “The biggest change we’re making is there’s a larger-than-necessary backroom, so we’re taking some of that space back for showroom.”
And while it’s smaller than a typical Steinhafels store, it can be merchandised to accentuate what the brand does well.
“The store is a little smaller than our average store, but we think we can be a little more efficient and provide the best of our assortment within that footprint,” Steinhafel said.
As Steinhafels expands its presence in the Chicago market with this announcement and the soon-open Orland Park store, the company has seen its moves in the market pay because it has met the needs of the communities in which it operates.
“Chicago has been the bright spot for the past nine months for our business,” Steinhafel said. “As we’ve added stores and increased marketing in the market, we’ve seen business increase in the Chicago market. We’re being propelled by the Chicago market’s success.
“The Chicago market is well served at the high end and the low end, but what’s been missing since Art Van’s bankruptcy is that broad middle retailer, and that’s what we’re trying to do there.”
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