Tony Wilkins makes himself comfortable on a living room suite at Furniture Connections near Adams Farm Shopping Center.
November 4, 2009
by Carol Brooks
The building beside Rite Aid, near the intersection of High Point and Mackay roads, has been a furniture store for over 30 years. But after the previous tenant, Furniture Choices, closed in the past year, the building was left vacant - and the Adams Farm/Sedgefield area was left without a nearby place to purchase furniture.
But with the opening of Furniture Connections on Sept. 9, area residents again have a furniture store in their midst.
“We want to be known as the Adams Farm furniture store,” said owner Tony Wilkins, a veteran of 27 years in the furniture business.
“I was approached by an investor to open up a store here,” he continued, noting that while the business had been in two locations in Greensboro in the past, he had been selling from home and online for the last few years. He felt the time was right to get back into the retail business.
“There's been a tremendous amount of traffic since we opened,” he said, aware that many customers of Furniture Choices are now coming to him. The previous business sold unfinished furniture, which Wilkins does not carry, but he refers those customers to Inspirations Furniture on Greensboro Road in High Point, run by former employees of Furniture Choices.
The Adams Farm resident began selling furniture from his parents' basement when he was 23 years old and later worked for The Market Center, buying market samples. His first store was on West Market Street in Greensboro. He took a hiatus from retail sales to be home during his children's early years. Those children, students at Pilot Elementary, are now six and seven.
Furniture Connections carries many brands of furniture and accessories. Buying a lot of showrooms after the furniture markets gives Wilkins a good variety of products and allows him to sell at dealer or wholesale cost. He can also special-order merchandise for his customers.
The business specializes in solid wood furniture made in the Carolinas, along with mattresses, silks, living room, bedroom, casual dining, children's furniture, leather, and accent pieces.
Wilkins is aware of plans to widen High Point Road and knows that his building will be a victim of the construction.
“I have a month-by-month lease,” he admitted, “but the project may be delayed for a few years.” He hopes that delay will give him the opportunity to become established in the area.
“I'm either the village idiot, or kin to Nostradamus,” he said, laughing, about opening in this location - and in a struggling economy.
