Main Street News

“It’s bittersweet,” shared Cindy Dunleavy, one of North Elm Home’s two owners in Millerton, NY when talking about her and partner John Scutieri’s decision to close their beloved store and retire. “We feel both excited and nervous about closing the store. But we feel good about how the sale has been going so far!”

In March of this year, John and Cindy were faced with a decision: renew their lease or retire. And this wasn’t an easy decision for them nor one that was made hastily, in fact, for over a year they had actively been working to sell their business. “It just didn’t work out, so we ultimately decided to retire,” shared John. He added, “We’ve been working in this industry for over 40 years, and when you do anything for 40 years, that’s plenty.”

Cut their teeth in furniture

John and Cindy began their careers in the home furnishing business over 40 years ago in Cindy’s father’s former store, Riley’s Furniture. They shared that it was there, for 30 years, that they learned everything about the furniture business. It was also there that they learned what they would like to do differently if they ever had the opportunity to own their own store. 

Eleven years ago that opportunity presented itself when they opened their store, North Elm Home Furnishings, in the old Johnson’s Antique space that’s located on North Elm Avenue / Route 22 just north of the light in Millerton. “Having been located right here on this Route 22 corridor,” Cindy said, “opened up an entirely new customer base for us that we’d never had because so many folks would drive past this location headed to Copake, Craryville and the Berkshires and stop in. When we opened North Elm, 75% of our customers were all new customers.” 

Cindy continued to explain that through the years that she and John have experienced many full circle moments, “At this point we’ve helped many generations within families with their home furnishing needs. Years ago we may have sold furniture to a newlywed couple who were just starting out, they then returned to us to buy furniture for their children – or we’ve also had the children of past customers come in who are now adults and were buying furniture for their new homes. This not only highlights what a loyal customer base we’ve had, but makes us feel good about the impact that our business has had on our community.” 

The big retirement sale

“The sale has been going really well,” John said and that point was highlighted by the fact that they had about three crews of movers in the store on this particular morning that I popped by to talk with them. The guys were moving furniture in the showroom, grabbing various pieces and loading them into the moving trucks, while Cindy and John were busy answering the phones and handing out delivery slips – organizing who was going where, with what furniture, to deliver at a specific time. 

“We normally have one team of guys who make our deliveries, with a second team sometimes helping out on weekends, but now we have two and three teams of guys helping us,” Cindy explained. “My husband is even here today helping out,” she said as her husband walked through the door carrying a chair that was headed out for delivery. 

Cindy continued to explain that they had significant inventory when they made the decision to retire and announced the sale. At the time of this writing, Cindy said that about 60% of their inventory has been sold, “but we can still order mattresses and outdoor furniture for customers,” she added, explaining that the turn-around and delivery times on those items is fairly quick and so those items can be easily ordered and delivered. 

Cindy gestured to the showroom and said that they still have a decent selection available with a mix of everything. “We have a lot of area rugs and shelving units available. We have a still have a nice selection of chairs and couches, and most of the items are 25% off, with others being 40-60% off,” Cindy explained. 

John, Cindy and I talked about the inventory on the floor and I shared with them that I had come by with my husband at the start of their sale, then again last weekend with my daughter, and in that timeframe I noticed that a significant amount of inventory had been sold but there were still so many lovely pieces available. I then told them that since I’d last been here, 6 days ago, even more inventory had been sold. Cindy said, “We’ve been adjusting our displays every week to highlight various items. As the sold inventory gets taken out and delivered, we’ve been adjusting everything that’s on display on the floor. Like I said, we had significant inventory when we started so there’s been a lot here.”

Officially their last day will be July 31st but Cindy said that she and John would love if people would also just stop by to say hi. “We’ve had a lot of our customers, some of whom we haven’t seen in a long time, who have stopped in during the sale to say hi and look around. It’s been really nice to see so many people,” Cindy shared.

She continued, “John and I feel bad that we are leaving a void in our community by closing our store, but we are also excited for this new chapter in our lives.”

John said as the days get closer to their last day, that they’ll continue to discount items that are remaining. 

What’s next?

When I asked them what was next for them, John said, “Nothing. I’m looking forward to not having to do anything. Cindy and I have been working for so long, and since opening North Elm Home, it’s just been the two of us so it’s been hard to get away and travel or do other things with one of us always having to be in the store. We were running a business. So I’m excited to not have to do anything.”

John added, “I’m looking forward to playing more golf now that I’ll have more time. I have a list of things to do around my house that I’ve never had time to do. My wife and I are also looking forward to traveling more. I want to go to South Africa.”

When I asked Cindy what was next for her she honestly said, “I don’t know. I’ve never not worked. There’s never been an on / off time, I’ve always owned a business and had to work so this will be a big change for me. But my husband and I look forward to traveling some and spending more time with our kids and grandkids, we just became grandparents again a few days ago! I’m also looking forward to doing some gardening as well as getting more involved in my community and volunteering now that I’ll have the time to do so.” 

After taking a phone call from a customer, Cindy sat back down and said, “I’m going to have to figure out a new life.” She shared that her husband retired a few years ago and they are up for new adventures now that she’ll be retired too. 

When asked what will stand out int heir memory bank as they close the doors for the final time, Cindy shared, “We’re proud of what we created and the part that we played in our community. We’re excited for what comes next though. It’ll be weird not seeing John every day, but we’re looking forward to brand new adventures.”

Stop by to say hi to John and Cindy and check out what’s available at North Elm Home before it’s gone – and remember they can still order mattresses and outdoor furniture. Visit them at 5938 N Elm Ave. in Millerton, NY. Call 518) 789-3848 and visit their website northelmhome.com.