Wayfair Opens First Large-Format Store

Wayfair Inc. (Boston) has opened its first large-format store, in Wilmette, Ill. The opening of the 150,000-square-foot space marks “a significant milestone in the company’s journey to meet customers where and how they prefer to shop,” the home goods retailer said in a news release.

The two-story store offers furniture, home decor, housewares, appliances and home improvement products in 19 departments. It also features an on-site café.
“Our store is thoughtfully designed to be both inspirational and practical, empowering shoppers to create spaces that are just right for them,” said Liza Lefkowski, VP of Merchandising and Stores.

In tribute to the community, Wayfair commissioned artist area artist Alyssa Low to create a custom mural weaving on the north exterior wall of the Wayfair store in the northern Chicago suburb.

Wayfair began operations in 2002 as an e-tailer and for almost a decade operated as hundreds of niche websites. In late 2011, Wayfair made the decision to permanently redirect over 240 of its niche websites into Wayfair.com, and change its name from CSN Stores to Wayfair.

The Wilmette store is not the company’s first brick-and-mortar locale; it has also opened Wayfair pop-ups and stores for its Joss & Martin and AllModern brands.