of the
YEAR If you are looking for a good night’s sleep, then the Forty Winks “National Store of the Year” should be the first and only place you stop. Owner Jerome Robinson tells us about the store and how it has grown over the last 16 years, and how he feels about picking up the prestigious accolade they recently acquired.
J
erome, can you tell us about the history of Forty Winks Port Macquarie? I have been in the furniture and bedding retail industry for 28 years and with Forty Winks since 1995. I started working for Forty Winks as a salesman and then Store Manager in Newcastle. As the business was expanding, there was an opportunity to open a store in Port Macquarie. I was asked if I would move there to manage the store. At the time, it was a huge decision to move our young family, but we saw it as the next step towards ultimately owning our own business. The fact that Port Macquarie is such a beautiful place to live, and raise our family, has been a bonus. We opened the store here in Port Macquarie in July 2001. We were originally in a different
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location on Lake Road. Whilst we were at takes time, and we saw this opportunity as a the Lake Road location, we became business long-term prospect. During the last 16 years, partners with one of the the business has grown original owners. In 2006 steadily with the town, we relocated the store particularly in the last few to its current position in years. This growth has the Port Home Zone on enabled us to expand our This growth has enabled Hastings River Drive. The staff numbers, continue to us to expand our staff last step to achieving improve the store and its numbers, continue to improve the store our goal occurred two service to our customers, and its service to our years ago, when we and to further strengthen customers, and to further became the sole owners our business and its strengthen our business and its of Forty Winks Port presence within the local presence within the local area. Macquarie. We are a area. family run business, What products do you with my wife, Dianne, specialise in? and our eldest daughter, Our large showroom Samantha, being part of our team. allows us to display a wide range of bedding Starting and developing a new business to suit all our customers’ needs and budgets. Whether our customers are in the market for a mattress, bedroom furniture, or some new linen to freshen up their bedroom, we have plenty of choice. For the main bedroom, there is an extensive range of furniture in the latest styles and trends, from Australian made solid hardwood suites available in a range of timbers, stains, and designs. We display beds with storage options, upholstered fabric beds, as well as modern, high gloss, two-pack furniture, for a lighter, more contemporary look. We haven’t forgotten the younger members of the family. We have a large selection of modern kids’ beds and bunks, as well as a great display of double beds, perfect for growing teenagers. When it comes to our mattress range, again we have something for everyone, from
well-known brands such as King Koil, Sealy Posturepedic and Sleepmaker. We will take the time to talk through your individual sleep issues, and requirements, endeavouring to find the perfect mattress for you. We also offer alternatives to the traditional innerspring mattress and base, such as Tempur pressure relieving mattresses, and adjustable bases that can be placed under many of our mattresses, for an even better night’s sleep. We also display a range of everyday, low priced mattresses, ensuring you can pick up a bargain all year round. What challenges have you overcome to get the business where it is today? Owning and running any small business is always challenging. There are challenges big and small that need to be dealt with daily. From a personal point of view, the biggest challenge is the mental challenge of running a seven day a week business. When you have invested so much into your business, it’s difficult to switch off. You are still mentally at work, even when you aren’t physically there. Juggling work and family life with three young children, when Dianne and I were half the staff, was a challenge - something that many small family businesses experience. One major challenge occurred when we were in our Lake Road premises. It was in December, a critical time of the year, just before Christmas. A storm came through, dumping a heap of hail, followed by a heavy downpour of rain. The drains were blocked by the hail, and the water had nowhere else to go. Within ten minutes, the whole warehouse and half the store had been flooded. It was a nightmare and