Holidays bittersweet with closing of Charlton Furniture
Distinctive home furnishings and outstanding customer service were staples of Charlton Furniture under the ownership of the Pikul family. As of late December, the store was in the process of closing after more than fifty years in business.
By Rod Lee
Hard as it is to imagine, the recently concluded holiday season was the town of Charlton’s first in more than fifty years without a fully operational Charlton Furniture store as part of the scene.
Charlton Furniture, started in the early 1970s by Joseph Pikul and brought to prominence at its location on Dresser Hill Road by his children David Pikul and Susan (Pikul) LeBlanc, began a graceful exit this past summer with a large closing sale. More than $3 million in inventory including floor stock, bedroom, dining, occasional lamps, wall art, accessories and area rugs was made available over the course of a number of weeks.
As a sign of the store’s relationship with the community and with its customer base, a message was posted on Charlton Furniture’s Facebook page on September 21st. It read simply, “We Love You for Loving Local.”
A separate announcement, placed on the home page of the store’s website, was equally poignant.
“After more than 50 years in business, we have decided to retire and close our doors. It was not an easy decision, as we have had the most wonderful customers and community support throughout the years. Thank you for your investment in our family and our business.
Sincerely,
Susan LeBlanc and the Charlton Furniture team.”
As of December 21, Charlton Furniture was still doing business on an appointment-only basis, in a continuing effort to move its remaining merchandise. Mattresses, bedroom sets, dining sets, leather and upholstery options, occasional tables, lamps and artwork were among the furnishings available to customers.
“It’s going good,” Store Manager Karen Legendre said, that afternoon. “Val (Valerie Agos-Langlais) and I here, mostly during the week, 10:00 to 4:00.”
Following their father’s lead, and his vision, the Pikul children took Charlton Furniture from a small country furniture store into three galleries, showcasing fresh styles, new collections and unbeatable prices. Susan’s attention to detail and passion led to the addition of a 12,000-square-foot showroom in 1998 and an on-site design center. David was responsible for creation of the bedding department, featuring such premium lines as Tempurpedic, Serta and Gold Bond.
In 2010, Susan and David reopened The Annex, offering brand-name closeouts and discounted and one-of-a-kind items.
During the Xpress’s years following the Charlton Furniture story, Susan LeBlanc expressed particular pride in the evolution of her design-team’s capabilities. She also enjoyed touting that Charlton Furniture was a primarily woman-run enterprise, consisting of a main staff that included herself, Karen Legendre, Judy Pelley, Kathy Zalewski, Melissa Trudo, Valerie Agos-Langlais, Johanna Tokarz and Lisa Carter.
Sadly, Charlton Furniture’s closing follows that of Spencer Furniture, also family-owned, which closed its doors in 2018 after a nearly sixty-year run.
Anyone familiar with Charlton Furniture’s charming country storefront on a knoll along picturesque Dresser Hill Road and all of those customers who got a chance to check out the American-made solid-wood bedroom and dining room sets (or who encountered “Otis,” the resident puppy) will undoubtedly agree that the business lived up to its motto:
“Escape the ordinary.”
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Contact Rod Lee at [email protected] or 774-232-2999.
