After more than 80 years, this Collinsville furniture store is closing

After 83 years of doing business in downtown Collinsville, Home Furniture, LLC is expected to close by the end of the year.

The company known for its “no monkey business” slogan opened in 1935 at 125 E. Main St. It's remained there for eight decades, but now the building is in need of major repairs.

Co-owner and manager of the furniture store Ronnie Y. Fredman said the furniture store has suffered water damage and roof decay in recent years.

But that’s not the only reason for the pending closure.

“We’ve been losing money for a number of years,” Fredman said. “The last 10 years have been tough.”

The furniture store added a sleep center, featuring the latest mattress technology, Fredman also increased the store's presence on social media and made other efforts to keep the business going.

But none of it was enough.

Retail foot traffic downtown isn’t what it used to be, Fredman said, and more consumers are choosing to shop online.

The furniture store is also competing with big box stores, Art Van Furniture and IKEA.

Fredman said the talk of closure has been painful for his employees, some of whom have worked for the company for 40 years or more.

“We really love Collinsville,” Fredman said. “We owe a lot of love to Collinsville and its people.”

Going out of business sales have not started yet as the company wraps up negotiations to terminate the business.

The building could be developed into something else, Fredman said, though it's too soon to tell what it could become.

This story was originally published May 23, 2018 at 4:41 PM with the headline "After more than 80 years, this Collinsville furniture store is closing."