Carl Harz always said that he had lived the American dream. Because when he was growing up in Germany, he had one dream and that was to own his own furniture store in America.
Carl immigrated to America from Germany in 1929, with his mother, Bertha and his brother Fred. His father was an upholsterer by trade, and when he settled in Elmer, New Jersey, he bought a chicken farm and turned one of the chicken coops into a reupholstering shop. In 1948, the first section of the store was built; it was a total of 2,700 square feet, with an upholstering shop in the rear and a showroom up front. Even though the store was small, at the time, Carl had a lot of help from his wife, Cecelia, who worked by his side until their sons Joe and Rick joined the business.
In the following years, Carl Harz Furniture added sections to the store, and added lots of different products. In 1981, Carl retired from the business, turning it over to his two youngest sons. Eventually Carl moved to Florida and passed away in 1994.
Today, the store has grown to be 35,000 square feet and still carries a large selection of furniture. It’s still run by Joe and Rick, but they are each joined by one of their children. Joe’s son Chuck and Rick’s daughter Kylene and occasionally if you’re lucky, a Harz will wait on you.
Carl Harz Furniture is a rarity and a great example of what America stands for. A dream, that became a reality, and who’s third generation is helping to maintain it.
Please visit www.CarlHarzFurniture.com.
Indicates businesses at least 51% woman owned.
