COVID leads Baer’s to take special steps in Jacksonville opening

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The opening of Baer’s 85,000-square-foot showroom here earlier this month was like none other for the 75-year-old family-owned retailer.

Extraordinary times called for extraordinary measures to keep crowds down and employees and customers safe during what is typically one of the busiest times for a furniture store — even without the unusual surge in demand the industry has been seeing.

“Luckily for us, we opened an 85,000-square-foot building, so we weren’t too concerned about (maintaining) social distancing,” CEO Jerry Baer told Home News Now. But that didn’t stop the company from taking unusual steps to ensure the opening came off without incident.

For starters, the midpriced to high-end retailer did something Jerry Baer doesn’t recall it ever doing before with a new store — a soft opening. Baer’s didn’t call it a soft opening, but rather a “pre-opening,” four days prior to the Saturday, Sept. 5 grand opening. The idea was to spread out the crowds by inviting area consumers in early to shop.

var gi_protocol = document.location.protocol;
var gi_redir = “”;
var gi_dasrc = gi_protocol + “//display.hcgmedia.com/?dsid=548202072085523523&pid=329&skid=76&if=0&at=0&alid=728_90&adtype=0&exty=1&special=0&redir=” + gi_redir + “&r=” + Math.random();
document.write(“”);

var gi_protocol = document.location.protocol;
var gi_redir = “”;
var gi_dasrc = gi_protocol + “//display.hcgmedia.com/?dsid=57420208119551504&pid=329&skid=76&if=0&at=0&alid=728_90&adtype=3&exty=1&special=0&redir=” + gi_redir + “&r=” + Math.random();
document.write(“”);

“We also limited the advertising,” Baer added. “That normal push with grand opening advertising was spread out. Our big mailer, for example, wasn’t sent out until after Labor Day. Normally, it would have gone out before — in time for the opening.

“But we wanted to be able to service the customers properly and safely. Our employees’ safety and customer safety were paramount in all of our considerations.”

For the actual grand opening day event, Baer’s did away with most of the traditional trappings. It invited fewer people for the ribbon cutting and eliminated the typical food and beverages (though bottled water was available on request).

var gi_protocol = document.location.protocol;
var gi_redir = “”;
var gi_dasrc = gi_protocol + “//display.hcgmedia.com/?dsid=578202081881555635&pid=329&skid=76&if=0&at=0&alid=728_90&adtype=3&exty=1&special=0&redir=” + gi_redir + “&r=” + Math.random();
document.write(“”);

var gi_protocol = document.location.protocol;
var gi_redir = “”;
var gi_dasrc = gi_protocol + “//display.hcgmedia.com/?dsid=582202091474319419&pid=329&skid=76&if=0&at=0&alid=728_90&adtype=3&exty=0&special=0&redir=” + gi_redir + “&r=” + Math.random();
document.write(“”);

Baer’s also required all guests and employees to wear masks and provided them for any shoppers who didn’t have one of their own.

And during the store’s first seven days, the retailer monitored the front door at all times — a job that usually fell to a Baer family member, as one was on site nearly the entire time, Jerry Baer said, to greet customers and ensure all safety protocols were being followed.

“We tried to keep the crowd of a normal grand opening down,” Baer said. “We were still incredibly excited about the crowd, but never felt the store was at any time too crowded, nor did we ever have to stop people from coming in.”

Looking back, Baer said the event was successful, and although he wouldn’t provide figures, he said sales “exceeded our expectations.”

The Jacksonville showroom is the Florida retailer’s 17th and northernmost store, expected to serve a consumer base stretching from south of St. Augustine, Fla., to north of Jacksonville, across the state line into Georgia. Featured products and brands include Tommy Bahama Home, Bernhardt, Natuzzi Editions, Century, Lexington Home Brands, Theodore Alexander, Vanguard, Universal, Serta and others.

Asked if the current supply chain disruption impacted the new store’s offering and delivery capabilities, Baer said, “We’re lucky to have wonderful partners who have helped support us through the challenge of shutting everything down and then restarting.

“Even with all the help, we still faced a lot of challenges. But the store was displayed magnificently and was full upon opening and still is today.” As for any delivery delays associated with the supply chain disruption, Baer said customers appear to be understanding.

var gi_protocol = document.location.protocol;
var gi_redir = “”;
var gi_dasrc = gi_protocol + “//display.hcgmedia.com/?dsid=566202081191214486&pid=329&skid=76&if=0&at=0&alid=728_90&adtype=3&exty=1&special=0&redir=” + gi_redir + “&r=” + Math.random();
document.write(“”);