Irv Blumkin has taken a now three-generation-old tradition of honesty and integrity to extend Nebraska Furniture Mart’s high-impact retail model and create a furniture-retailing powerhouse.
NFM, a cornerstone of Berkshire Hathaway’s furniture division, operates five huge stores: a 475,000-square-foot showroom in Omaha; a 450,000-square-foot showroom in Kansas City, Kan.; a 560,000-square-foot showroom in The Colony, Texas; a 65,000-square-foot store in Clive, Iowa; and a Homemakers Furniture store in Des Moines.
That growth has been slow and steady, with an emphasis on choosing the right market at the right time and providing a retail experience that made for a shopping destination from the day the doors open. The approach reflects other aspects of a strong business foundation that has lended stability during soft economic conditions…