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Business ventures are never easy, but being built in 1926, it was a definite turbulent and uncertain chapter in American economic history. This particular Olney, Illinois business was however built on ethical practice and honesty as its foundation by Clyde H. King. As in those times money was scarce, King found a way to build bridges and community bonds, to assist families and keep his business open. By this practice, his legacy has lasted on the word he built on the relationships he made that have now carried on for generations in the local communities surrounding them. We often think of larger companies that have withstood the perils of economic and our countries ebbs and flows of recessions, such as railroads, NBC, and Northwest Airlines to name a few. Majority of smaller rural business owners were not quite as fortunate to make it out of the gates as King. The main street store was acquired from Bert H. Cooksey, then renamed as Kings Furniture. It seems unseemingly rare for an expansion, but the new enteranputenier was able to have an expansion on what is now Ivys Cottage in 1928. In the 80s, the Kings acquired the adjacent property built by D.A. Piper, which had been in the past a Ford dealership and garage and even a Montgomery Ward Store. The family had all worked in the business with Richard and John sons of Clyde running the business, and now henceforth each one of their families heirs taking on the role, Mike and Eric, as cousins being in co-leadership.

When asking Mike King, of the family struggles they have known of in their approaching centennial mark, he shared the early beginnings his grandfathers first steps were treacherous in itself as they were during the depression era. The ability to have creative business strategies is what helped him withstand the storms during those early years especially, Mike King shared. During World War II, it was also a difficult period with new furniture being hard to acquire and certain materials due to the war in itself. King shared the most recent hurdle has been quite harsh, in the COVID-19 sanctions, in that not knowing when as an non-essential business they might have been able to open up, or how long or to what capacity has been a definite challenge. To overcome obstacles, he said inlight of this new twist, "even knowing times are tough now, there are better days ahead."

When asked what the rewards of being a small town business owner were, King quickly responded with "seeing the people come back, confident they were treated well. "Thus the Kings strong backbone in customer service has served well with them for

now over nine decades and the generations that have dedicated themselves to it. By making key element changes in using suppliers that offer a good marketing base has helped them as well, such as expansion of their "Lazy Boy" line, King added. When asked what advice might give to anyone thinking of going into a small town business, he suggested the following, "Get lots of advice, talk to a lot of people, find out if there is a need for it and feel out the community." The future looks bright for the King family business, as they have a good foundation, a dedication to their long standing customer base, as well as their very positive attitude. King shared by being willing to change business practices, keeping up with how people are also changing and being willing to listen, the future looks promising for growth.

See original here:
Small town business gives highlights on their longevity and success for 94 years - Kewanee Star Courier

This entry was posted on August 13, 2020 at 7:48 pm and is filed under Longevity. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed. |