Matriarch of long running Arlington Heights business dies
Life story
~Irene Mayer, 1926-2011
One of the longest running family businesses in Arlington Heights has lost its matriarch.
Irene Mayer, known as the “brains” behind the success of Northwest Metalcraft, a patio furniture and fireplace shop, passed away Monday, following complications from a stroke. She was 85.
Together with her husband, Ed, an ironworker who supplied the “brawn,” they began selling patio furniture six decades ago from their store on Arlington Heights Road, just south of the village's downtown district.
“My mother was the one that started the patio business,” said her daughter, Dawn Selleck of Arlington Heights.
“She bought herself a new patio set, and when one of the guys working on State Road offered to buy it, she took my Dad's truck and bought four more,” added Selleck, who now runs the store with her brother, Dan, and other family members.
That was in 1947, after the couple had married and moved to Arlington Heights, where Ed Mayer had grown up. As their patio furniture business took off, they built their store in 1950.
Needing business in the winter months, the couple started selling gas fireplaces and accessories, while Ed Mayer continued doing custom ornamental ironwork for local homes.
Family members say the Mayers were the first to create the concept of a patio furniture and fireplace store, which has become common across the suburbs. Over the years, they added more outdoor items, including cushions, covers, grills, fireplace pits and mailboxes.
Family members say Mrs. Mayer drove the business. She doubled as the bookkeeper and payroll clerk, in between handling sales on the floor.
“She was the one everyone wanted to see,” Selleck said. “People wanted to see that redhead in the high heels, with the curls on top of her head.”
She also did much of the buying, attended the housewares show and marketed the business.
“She just had a knack for sales, and she knew what would sell,” said her son, Dan.
Mrs. Mayer had no retail experience before she married. Instead, she had traveled the world, playing saxophone in the Sharon Rogers All-Girl Band. The Chicago-based swing band formed in 1940 and played USO shows during World War II.
Mrs. Mayer also endured hardship when her oldest daughter, JoAnne Collins, was killed in a single-engine plane crash along with her husband, Jerry, in 1996. The couple had owned Collins Fireplace & Patio stores, in Wheeling, Hanover Park and Waukegan.
Besides her son and daughter, Mrs. Mayer is survived by her husband, Ed, as well as eight grandchildren and seven great grandchildren.
Visitation will take place from 3 to 8 p.m. Friday, with a memorial service planned for 7 p.m., all at Glueckert Funeral Home, 1520 N. Arlington Heights Road in Arlington Heights.