When buying furniture, invest in quality

O'Reilly's Furniture & Amish Gallery at 1151 S. Milwaukee Ave. in Libertyville is still going strong after 42 years in business.

Opened in 1977, O'Reilly's Furniture has stood the test of time by carving a niche in the Lake County furniture market, mixing custom American-made, solid wood furniture, as well as upholstered and leather furniture.

Asked to explain the store's long-term success, owner Mike Walsh said “Most of our competitors are big box, low-end furniture stores, and a few very expensive high-end stores. O'Reilly's is in the middle, and offers a degree of customization that no one else is offering — certainly at the price point.”

O'Reilly's Furniture is unlike most furniture stores because its 15,000-square-foot space is packed tight with furniture of all descriptions — 40 dining table and chair sets, 50 entertainment centers, 15 bedroom sets, 25 occasional table sets; 120 sofas, chairs and sectionals; and so forth, all displayed in an effort to let customers touch, see and feel as much as possible while making a decision.

Seeing finishes, legs, tops and edges on a full-size piece of furniture is much easier than trying to envision something based on a small sample or a photo in a book, Walsh said.

Almost all of the wood furniture in O'Reilly's is Amish-made, and according to Walsh, the longtime connection between the store and the talented craftsmen who hand-make the “family heirlooms” they sell is its biggest strength.

“The benefit of working with such skilled artisans is not only that their quality is unmatched, but that the customer has a chance to customize their furniture to get exactly what they want,” he explained. “We facilitate a relationship that allows customers and craftsmen to work together to create unique, one-of-a-kind pieces that fit perfectly in people's homes, pieces they will pass on to future generations.”

This customization is what truly sets O'Reilly's apart from other furniture stores, as customers can choose their style, size, wood, color, edges, hardware for all solid wood, Amish-made furniture in the store. For upholstery, customers can choose from hundreds of sectional, sofa, love seat and chair styles, and more than 1,200 fabrics and leathers.

As for what the future holds for O'Reilly's, Walsh says he will continue to keep the furniture on their showroom floor updated to reflect modern trends and styles (they recently added an Amish-made, motorized lift desk to their collection of home office furniture), all while keeping the traditional quality and customer service that O'Reilly's has prided themselves on since 1977.

“We haul away old furniture for free, and if the customer ever calls with an issue, one of us goes right over to the home to solve the problem. That's something we'll never change,” he continued.

Walsh believes that as long as O'Reilly's Furniture & Amish Gallery continues to focus on always putting the customer first, though their service, quality and customization, there's no reason to believe that they won't still be serving Lake County for another 40 years or more. As he said with a smile, “We're not going anywhere.”

For more information, visit www.oreillysfurniture.com or call (847) 367-6550.