Replacements, Ltd.

Last updated
Replacements, Ltd.
Company type Limited company
Founded Greensboro, North Carolina, 1981
FounderBob Page
Key people
Scott Fleming
Revenue$80 million
OwnerBob Page
Number of employees
400
Website www.replacements.com OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Entrance to Replacements, Ltd. showroom in Greensboro, NC Replacements-Ltd-Sign.jpg
Entrance to Replacements, Ltd. showroom in Greensboro, NC

Replacements, Ltd., based in Greensboro, North Carolina, is the world's largest retailer of china, crystal and silverware, including both patterns still available from manufactures and discontinued patterns. The company, which began in 1981, had an inventory in 2011 of 14 million items from more than 340,000 patterns, with annual sales of $80 million to 10 million customers. [1]

Contents

History

In 1981, Bob Page left his job as an auditor for the state of North Carolina to start a mail-order business selling antique china and glassware. [2] Located first in his attic and then in 400 square feet on North Elm Street in Greensboro, North Carolina, Page's business included merchandise from flea markets and customer requests on index cards. In four years, the company went from $159,000 a year to nearly $4 million in sales. The company moved several times, each time to larger space, at Bessemer Avenue, Holbrook Street, and Gallimore Dairy Road. [3] [4]

In 1989, sales were over $9 million, and the company added flatware, also buying its current location on Knox Road in McLeansville. [3] In October 1990, Replacements moved its 1-million-item inventory to the new headquarters/warehouse. [5]

One of the company's services was researching patterns based on photos and rubbings. Buyers also searched for items in patterns that were hard to find, with sources including gift shops and jewelry stores that were closing. The company restored flatware, but china restoration was done only for items to be sold. Inventory ranged from "glasses given out for filling up at the gas station" to Flora Danica. [4] [6]

By 1993, Replacements had made small additions to its new site, which totalled 104,000 square feet, and the company planned a 120,000-square-foot expansion. [7]

In 1999, The Pfaltzgraff Co. made an agreement with Replacements for the company to sell its patterns which were no longer available. This included a list of customers who might want to replace items with the old patterns. Replacements made a similar deal with JCPenney. [8]

In December 2005, Replacements announced plans to expand from 230,000 to 500,000 square feet on 21 acres at a cost of $8 million, including a relocation of Knox Road. Once the project was completed, the company would no longer need to rent a nearby warehouse. [9]

In January 2006, the city of Greensboro annexed the land where the company was located, though its mailing address remained McLeansville. By this time, half of the company's orders came through its web site. Sales were $75 million, nearly two thirds of that china, one sixth flatware, and one eighth crystal. [3]

On August 12, 2008, the company announced plans to increase the size of its headquarters by about 500,000 square feet at a cost of $15 million, putting around 550 employees and 12 million items in one location, down from four. [10]

National attention

In 1986, Inc. named Replacements one of the 500 fastest-growing businesses in the United States. [4]

As far back as 1992, customers included Barbra Streisand, Ted Kennedy, Patrick Swayze and The Vatican. [6]

In 1997, Victory! named Page its Entrepreneur of the Year for his commitment to homosexual employees, including partner benefits. [11]

In August 2000, Oprah Winfrey presented a guest with a bowl in a pattern the guest thought she would never be able to find, a pattern it had found by working with Replacements. [12]

In November 2000, Animal Planet's Pet Story taped an episode about the company's policy of letting people bring their dogs to work. Between 30 and 50 employees did so at the time. Around the same time, CNN's Business Unusual also planned to broadcast a story on Replacements. [13] That same month, a Guiding Light Thanksgiving episode using china supplied by Replacements. [14]

In November 2001, Replacements sold eight Pfaltzgraff plates to be used on Everybody Loves Raymond . When the show began, china patterns were selected for the home of the fictional Barone family. But some of the plates were broken in the course of the series run, and Pfaltzgraff no longer made the plates. In addition, the show needed a pattern not available since 1955 that even Replacements did not have but promised to search for. [14] Later, Replacements found Tchotchkes of Little Red Riding Hood and Little Bo Peep for the family to give as a birthday present to Marie. [15]

In 2001, the company began running ads on U.S. Postal Service trucks outside the Greensboro area. [16]

For its Legend ship debuting August 24, 2002, Carnival Cruise Lines purchased 500 pieces of china for its main dining room. [17]

In its 2003 edition, the Rand McNally road atlas named Replacements to its list of top 25 free attractions. The company has conducted tours of its warehouse starting in July 1992. [6] [18]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lenox (company)</span> American bone china manufacturer

Lenox Corporation is an American manufacturing company that sells tableware, giftware, and collectible products under the Lenox, Dansk, Reed & Barton, Gorham, and Oneida brands. For most of the 20th century, it was the most prestigious American maker of tableware, as well as making decorative pieces. Several china services were commissioned for the White House. By 2020, it was the last significant manufacturer of bone china in the United States, until the COVID-19 pandemic forced the closure of the company's only remaining American factory.

Oneida Limited is an American manufacturer and seller of tableware and cutlery. Oneida is one of the world's largest designers and sellers of stainless steel and silverplated cutlery and tableware for the consumer and foodservice industries. It is also the largest supplier of dinnerware to the foodservice industry in North America. The company operates in the United States, Canada, Latin America, Europe, and Asia, marketing and distributing tabletop products, which include flatware, dinnerware, crystal stemware, glassware and kitchen tools and gadgets. The factory in upstate NY was sold to Liberty Tabletop, who is the sole manufacturer of US made flatware. The company originated in the late-nineteenth century in the Oneida Community in Oneida, New York.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harrods</span> British department store chain

Harrods is a British luxury department store located on Brompton Road in Knightsbridge, London, England. It is owned by Harrods Ltd, a company currently owned by the state of Qatar via its sovereign wealth fund, the Qatar Investment Authority as part of Qatar's global soft power strategy. The Harrods brand also applies to other enterprises undertaken by the Harrods group of companies, including Harrods Estates, Harrods Aviation and Air Harrods. Recognised as one of the world's leading department stores, it is visited by 15 million people per year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Best Buy</span> American multinational consumer electronics retailer

Best Buy Co. Inc. is an American multinational consumer electronics retailer headquartered in Richfield, Minnesota. Originally founded by Richard M. Schulze and James Wheeler in 1966 as an audio specialty store called Sound of Music, it was rebranded under its current name with an emphasis on consumer electronics in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old Navy</span> American clothing and accessories retailer owned by Gap Inc

Old Navy is an American clothing and accessories retailing company owned by multinational corporation Gap Inc. It has corporate operations in the Mission Bay neighborhood of San Francisco, California. The largest of the Old Navy stores are its flagship stores, located in New York City, Seattle, Chicago, San Francisco, Manila, and Mexico City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Costco</span> American multinational membership-only warehouse club chain

Costco Wholesale Corporation is an American multinational corporation which operates a chain of membership-only big-box warehouse club retail stores. As of 2023, Costco is the third-largest retailer in the world and is the world's largest retailer of choice and prime beef, organic foods, rotisserie chicken, and wine as of 2016. Costco is ranked #11 on the Fortune 500 rankings of the largest United States corporations by total revenue.

Claire's is an American retailer of accessories, jewelry, and toys primarily aimed toward tween and teen girls. It was founded in 1961 and is based in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. The company is primarily owned by Elliott Management and Monarch Alternative Capital, but, in 2022, announced plans to go public with an initial public offering.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">B&Q</span> British multinational home improvement DIY store chain owned by Kingfisher plc

B&Q Limited is a British multinational DIY and home improvement retailing company, with headquarters in Eastleigh, England. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Kingfisher plc. It was founded in March 1969 by Richard Block and David Quayle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tableware</span> Items used for setting a table and serving food

Tableware items are the dishware and utensils used for setting a table, serving food, and dining. The term includes cutlery, glassware, serving dishes, serving utensils, and other items used for practical as well as decorative purposes. The quality, nature, variety and number of objects varies according to culture, religion, number of diners, cuisine and occasion. For example, Middle Eastern, Indian or Polynesian food culture and cuisine sometimes limits tableware to serving dishes, using bread or leaves as individual plates, and not infrequently without use of cutlery. Special occasions are usually reflected in higher quality tableware.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Self storage</span> Industry that rents storage space

Self storage is an industry that rents storage space, also known as "storage units," to tenants, usually on a short-term basis. Self-storage tenants include businesses and individuals.

Service Merchandise was a retail chain of catalog showrooms carrying jewelry, toys, sporting goods and electronics. The company, which first began in 1934 as a five-and-dime store, was in existence for 68 years before ceasing operations in 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pfaltzgraff</span>

Pfaltzgraff is an American kitchenware brand of dinnerware, serveware, drinkware and flatware.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stieff Silver</span>

The Stieff Company, Silversmiths, Goldsmiths & Pewterers, located in Baltimore, Maryland, is also known as Kirk-Stieff after 1979.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gristedes</span> New York City-based chain of supermarkets

Gristedes is a New York City–based chain of supermarkets. It serves a mostly urban customer base.

Foster & Smith, Inc. was an American mail order and e-commerce pet supply corporation based in Rhinelander, Wisconsin. The company funds PetEducation.com, a "resource for any pet owner who is seeking information."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prologis</span> American real estate company

Prologis, Inc. is a real estate investment trust headquartered in San Francisco, California that invests in logistics facilities. The company was formed through the merger of AMB Property Corporation and Prologis in June 2011, which made Prologis the largest industrial real estate company in the world. As of December 2022, the company owned 5,495 buildings comprising about 1.2 billion square feet in 19 countries across North America, Latin America, Europe, and Asia. According to The Economist, its business strategy is focused on warehouses that are located close to huge urban areas where land is scarce. It serves about 6,600 tenants. Prologis began to expand its non-real estate business, Essentials, in 2022, offering customers solar power, racking systems, forklifts, generators, and EV charging infrastructure. and other logistics tech equipment for purchase.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Furnitureland South</span> US furniture shop

Furnitureland South in Jamestown, North Carolina is the largest retail furniture store in the United States with 1.3 million square feet and $180 million in sales as of 2004. Called "the Walt Disney World of Furniture", the store is known for its 85-foot-tall highboy, and is the first of the group of stores which in 2004 came to be known as "Furniture Row" as well as "Gateway to the Furniture Capital of the World."

Kerry Logistics Network Limited is a listed company engaged in third party logistics, freight services, warehouse operations, and supply chain solutions. It was listed on 19 December 2013, raising over US$280 million, as a spin-off of Kerry Properties Limited.

Sherrill Manufacturing, Inc. (SMI), which operates under the brand name Liberty Tabletop, is a manufacturer of flatware located in Sherrill, New York. The company was founded in 2005 when Matt Roberts and Greg Owens bought the factory and equipment from their former employer, Oneida Limited, once they had ceased manufacturing in the facility. It sells its flatware and other home goods to consumers under the brand Liberty Tabletop.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Industrial Electronic Engineers</span> American electronics company

Industrial Electronic Engineers, Inc. is an American electronics company based in Van Nuys, California. Founded by Donald Gumpertz in 1946, the company is best known for its electronic displays, becoming a pioneer in the field under Gumpertz's leadership.

References

  1. ↑ "Business Spotlight: Replacements Ltd.," Greensboro News & Record, March 27, 2011.
  2. ↑ James B. Stewart (May 26, 2012). "A Company's Stand for Gay Marriage, and Its Cost". New York Times.
  3. 1 2 3 Michelle Jarboe, "One Dream, 25 years: Thousands of patterns," Greensboro News & Record, March 14, 2006.
  4. 1 2 3 Jack Scism, "Replacements Ltd.: A Small Business Success Story," Greensboro News & Record, May 11, 1992.
  5. ↑ "NCNB Earnings Down 60 Percent from 1989," Greensboro News & Record, October 18, 1990.
  6. 1 2 3 Susan Ladd, "Restoring the Obsolete," Greensboro News & Record, September 30, 1992.
  7. ↑ Jack Scism, "Firm Expands Without Waiting for Painter Plan," Greensboro News & Record, March 5, 1993.
  8. ↑ Peter Krouse, "Replacements Ltd. Makes Deal to Handle Orders for Company," Greensboro News & Record, July 3, 1999.
  9. ↑ Andrea Griffith, "Replacements announces expansion of Knox Road location," Greensboro News & Record, December 28, 2005.
  10. ↑ Lanita Withers, "Replacements plans big expansion," Greensboro News & Record, August 13, 2008.
  11. ↑ "Greensboro Businessman Named Top Entrepreneur by Magazine," Greensboro News & Record, March 24, 1997
  12. ↑ Amy Joyner, "Replacements' Cup Runneth Over with Oprah Exposure," Greensboro News & Record, August 26, 2000.
  13. ↑ Amy Joyner, "Two Cable Networks Will Air Replacements Ltd. Story," Greensboro News & Record, November 18, 2000.
  14. 1 2 Amy Joyner, "Replacements Steps up to Plate for TV Show," Greensboro News & Record, November 17, 2001.
  15. ↑ "Everybody Loves Replacements Ltd.," Greensboro News & Record, December 22, 2002.
  16. ↑ Amy Joyner, "Replacements to Fly Like an Eagle with Post Office," Greensboro News & Record, March 26, 2001.
  17. ↑ Amy Joyner, "China Set Fit for a Legend," Greensboro News & Record, June 6, 2002.
  18. ↑ Nina Pence, "Replacements Makes 'Best' List," Greensboro News & Record, September 15, 2002.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.