Or "Hardrock, Coco and Joe." Smithe guy Walt actually Walter Smithe III 45 is president and general manager of the. The Smithe sisters now serve as the face . "It's made us focus on what we do best, which is designing our clients' homes," he said. Sisters Take Smithe Spotlight, More High-End Barware, and a Sofa Sale, 2020 Chicago magazine / A Chicago Tribune Media Group website, map of participating First Friday locations, Design Controls - Facebook Instant Article. Meghan can recall her pigtails bouncing as she ran through the Walter E. Smithe warehouse as a young girl, pulling sales tags in exchange for a nickel or dime from her grandfather, Walter Smithe Jr. It worked really well for a long time, but post-recession, we saw peoples sensibilities had changed, says Meghan. The sisters left for college with a few prized furnishings and a work ethic that became a permanent fixture in their lives. Now, a lot more people know about us than knew a few years ago.". "In a family business, everyone has to wear all hats at all times," Maureen said. Their dad, the company's president, continued filming his signature ads with his brother, Mark, for a short period of time, Colleen said. The slogans "You dream it, we build it", or "That's Smithe, with an E" are commonly used. Postpartum bladder leaks are common but there's help. I was probably in elementary school when I would come in to work in the warehouse, sweeping for a nickel, Colleen says of the brand, which first opened in 1945. I only hear them on the radio. Check out the new collection. Only a year apart in age, the lively, fast-talking Smithe sisters consider one another best friends. - Nick Celozzi and Maury Ettleson: Starting in the early '70s, they waved fistfuls of cash at TV viewers and reminded everyone that Celozzi-Ettleson Chevrolet in Elmhurst was "Where you always save more money!". For instance, finding that perfect piece of decorative furniture that creatively doubles as a toy box for kids games, toys and video devices. Give yourself time to just be in a comfortable and beautiful outdoor space. My wife and I were just talking about this yesterday, we truly hate the Walter E Smithe commercials with the daughters. Or using a new high-tech application to keep couch fabric truly worry free from childrens spills, everything from spaghetti sauce to Kool-Aid. It's not included in a shorter version now airing on TV. Get 5 free searches. Walter Smithe, president of the furniture company, climbs the stairs March 21, 2017, at the Walter E. Smithe furniture store in Oak Brook, alongside his four daughters, Colleen, from left, Caitie, Maureen and Meghan. "And a woman was there with her daughter, and she nudged her and I heard her say, 'That's the Walter E. Smithe guy.' Walter E. Smithe Furniture & Design advertising has featured everything from parodies of "The Price Is Right" to a 2013 classic in which the Smithe brothers got into a wrestling ring with Billy Corgan. The first change I noticed was it became all about the sons. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_E._Smithe. Find employees, official website, emails, phone numbers, revenue, employee headcount, social accounts, and anything related to Walter E. Smithe Furniture. The Smithe boys started out in a tiny ranch house in Des Plaines, the children of Walter Jr. and Florence. I also think, coming from a family business myself, to see how they interact with each other just gives you the feeling that they're good people, that you'd want to do business with those people.". My hope is to inspire people to slow down enough to talk with a designer and hopefully buy something.. Sip A Negroni While Exploring This Stunning New Home Boutique, Peruse Artisan-Crafted Collections At This Chicago Boutique, Fresh And Feminine Vibes Rule This Winnetka Boutique, Whats In Store At Chicagos New Must-See Surface Destination, 3 Things To Know About The Latest RH Gallery, Do Not Sell Or Share My Personal Information. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune). Getting the Smithes in front of the camera wasn't easy. officially retires, although he still enjoys visiting showrooms and meeting clients. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Determine whether Walter E. Smithe Furniture grew or shrank during the last recession. The Smithe sisters, all in their thirties, worked in the family business as teens but pursued different career paths in adulthood. Watch. Hell stand on things, jump on them, do his best to break dining chairs. Nearby is a mangled lamp that will never find its way to a Smithe showroom floor. Today. The campaign was inspired in part by a partnership with designer/house-flipper Jeff Lewis of the Bravo show Flipping Out. USA. For decades, the public faces of the privately owned company have been the sisters father, Walter E. Smithe IIIthe 59-year-old grandson of the businesss namesakeand the sisters uncles, Mark and Tim. Chicago magazine newsletters have you covered. Explore. Its a constant toggle between work and family talk, notes Colleen, but at the end of the day theyre focused on creating a furniture company that helps clients truly curate a home. "He'd come up from behind and drop in it on us," Tim says. Building upon the Smithe family legacy is a big responsibility, the sisters said, one they've embraced with fervor. In a new seven-minute "Smithe Family Makeover" video, you'll only see one Smithe brother and you'll only hear the new version of the familiar jingle if you watch all the way through to the credits. Multi Location Business. "You think a huge corporation is going to have pencil pushers and button touchers," says Lynn Hamilton, vice president of the Shirley Hamilton Agency, a Chicago talent agency. How could the Itasca-based company break the mold and reach a new audience while still carrying its message into a fourth generation? Subscribe to one or more of our free e-mail newsletters to get instant updates on local news, events, and opportunities in Chicago. (Last year, Walter E. Smithe resurrected the 1950s-era cartoon that was a holiday staple on WGN-Ch. He received a Bachelor of Philosophy in Commerce from the University of Notre Dame in 1958. Lewis Lazare. Shop the label. But repeated airings of the ad have made him and his door legendary. Hope, once a Smithe designer and store manager, now lives in Colorado with her husband. "And I'd be yelling, `I can't breathe! All three attended St. Mary's College in Winona, Minn. Walt got an MBA at Notre Dame, Tim got one at Northwestern, and Mark got a law degree at Loyola. He attended the University of Notre Dame and earned a bachelor 's . "If our specialties fit those needs, then we were invited to have a conversation and explore the opportunity, but it was never a demand placed on us.". We refer to Smithe.com as our 12th store, since many of our clients are doing their research online before coming to see us in person.. The Smithe sisters are working to expose the brand to a new customer base Photo credit: Robin Subar. Dont burden yourself with the boredom of a matching wood set. The Smithe sisters now serve as the face of the firm, offering a female perspective that better reflects the company, the industry and the country today. "People really did love seeing them on their TVs.". And now with the company's 75th anniversary approaching in August, they're ready to push forward plans to expand and evolve. But I never forget that these are my sisters and I completely respect them. "The majority of what we run is informational and tells about the company, but those aren't the ones people are talking about at the water cooler. It was an organic transition for each of us, says Colleen, the youngest sister. This is not how you attract a premium buyer or build a premium brand. The spot showed the brothers at a news conference announcing that they had purchased Wrigley Field, home of the Chicago Cubs, with plans to rename it Walter E. Smithe Field. [4], Many of Walter E. Smithe's commercials have been pop culture parodies. Sisters Colleen, Caitie, Maureen and Meghan Smithe, from left, are breaking the mold as fourth-generation leaders of the 75-year-old Walter E. Smithe Furniture and Design. Growing up, she and her sisters held various roles at the furniture and design firm, earning their first paychecks and gaining job experience and exploring interests that would later launch their careers. "I said, `Let's get you guys on camera.'". Smithe's three sons the Smithe brothers Mark, Tim, and Walter III became executives in the business and were regularly featured in the commercials. Whether bringing in color as an accent or making a big statement with a lot of color, your home will feel instantly transformed and personalized. walter e smithe, furniture stores near me, ballinger vase buy, gold side end table, tall mirror, walter e smithe daughters, furniture . The girls got the bedrooms; the three boys shared a room in the basement. To their delight, the reaction to that initial campaign was primarily positive, as has been the case for every commercial they've produced since. Whoever said brick-and-mortar is dead hasn't met the Smithe sisters. They're nice folks. First published on October 12, 2022 / 3:27 PM. We can be real nimble when we're this tight and this spread across the business.". Till your hair grows back."). To see these serious, stuffy guys laughing and having fun someone yelled out, `You should use that as a commercial. Calkins says that by minimizing production costs and media costs and doing those quick turnarounds, Smithe gets a bigger bang for its advertising buck. Smithe was born in 1936 to Margaret Slifka and Walter E. Smithe Sr., and grew up on the Northwest Side in Belmont Central. This style is out there and we need to respond and get it on our floor. '", "The business steadily increased since we started the commercials," Walt says. Additional partnerships with the likes of Cynthia Rowley and Ellen Degeneres have exposed the company to a new customer base. The four women have been taking on bigger roles at the company and star in its new ad. Then when I plugged it in, the place went up for grabs. Is she OK? walter e smithe furniture - inc. walter e smithe furniture. Nothing will be worse than the commercials they ran the last time the Cicadas were in season. The Feldco guy creeps me out more. As mothers, all of us have cleaned up a childs spill, or even their vomit, from our furniture, Colleen jokes. While a new recession may strike a particular industry, measuring the industry and . It was a natural fit, she said. Three years later, she recruited Colleen to become advertising director -- a position she accepted without hesitation. The new campaign, dubbed Smithe Family Makeovers, showcases Smithe furniture in the homes of actual clients, revealing the handiwork of the companys designers in HGTV-esque episodes. The answer -- and the sisters' secret to success -- can be summed up in three key words: Fresh. Were often building on what we see resonating in the market and what is interesting and beautiful at the moment., Walter E. Smithe Furniture & Design is coming off a successful year of strategic partnerships with Bravo TVs Jeff Lewis and interior designer Cynthia Rowley. Like their brothers, the four Smithe sisters were all in the business when they were in high school. Contents. The Smithes had been encouraged to air their outtakes on television after Tim Smithe screened them at an interior design seminar and received a positive reaction from the crowd. And it's those commercials, always informative and usually silly, that have the Smithe brothers walking in the footsteps of Linn Burton and the Empire Carpet Guy as Chicago TV commercial icons. "What about you and your sisters?". The Smithes stand out because they're doing silly things. Walter E. Smithe III, is the President of family owned and operated Walter E. Smithe Furniture + Design. - The Victory Auto Wreckers guy: Almost every night since 1981, on some channel, Bob Zajdel has barely escaped injury when the driver's door fell off his old Chevy.