Heidi Richardson did not want to call it quits when Worcester’s Rotmans Furniture closed last December.
She and a group of veteran employees banded together and decided to start a new business venture called Harte’s Home, a home furnishing store, that opens doors Saturday, Dec. 9.
The store is located on Route 20 in Auburn and Richardson, the former general manager at Rotmans, said a core group of former Rotmans employees were not ready to say goodbye to a loyal customer base.
“There were a lot of things that made Rotmans special, not least the people,” Richardson said on Tuesday. “Truly we were a family and I don’t use that word lightly.”
Richardson, president of Harte’s Home, is calling it a “soft opening” for the store this weekend with plans for a larger grand opening after the holidays.
Rotmans Furniture — whose large brick factory building on Southbridge Street could be seen from Interstate 290 — closed after more than 60 years of business. Its most recent CEO, Steve Rotman, inherited the company from his parents Murray and Ida Rotman.
Without immediate family to take over the business, the store closed on Dec. 12, 2022.
Rotman, in his early 80s, told Furniture Today last year that with his kids in other careers and family not involved, “It’s time to make changes and move on.”
Several of the workers who moved on from Rotmans to Harte’s Home spent at least 40 years working at the furniture store in Worcester, according to Richardson.
“Not many new stores can say they have hundreds of years experience serving the market, but we can,” she said.
She said there was always a “central family” of employees at Rotmans and hearing the news that the store left many feeling “heartbroken.”
The original idea to purchase Rotmans to keep the store alive fell short due to financial constraints, she said.
Instead, she found the Harte’s Home current building on Washington Street available and decided it was a good location to cater to Massachusetts residents and northern Connecticut residents.
Thirteen former employees of Rotmans are involved with the new store, she said.
Harte’s Home brings a selection of products for living room, dining room, bedroom furniture, and mattresses.
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Marv Carron, the store’s senior merchandiser, said in the news release that customers can expect brands such as Beautyrest, Sealy, La-Z-Boy and Canadel.
As an independent furniture store, she said she recognized the challenges of competing against large, corporate companies, but said that its location and the unmatched enthusiasm from staff would set the store apart.
“The critical piece is that customer piece,” Richardson said. “(Our employees) genuinely care about customers. You can’t teach that.”
The store’s address is 771 Washington St., Auburn. Its website can be found here.
