Lumber Liquidators Opening Wichita Store

Wichita, KS, July 17, 2008--Lumber Liquidators will open a Wichita store on July 25, according to story in the Wichita Eagle.

The Wichita expansion is driven by customer demand at the company's Tulsa and Kansas City stores and is part of a massive nationwide expansion, Lumber Liquidators founder Tom Sullivan said.

"We're getting people driving all the way from your area to get our deals," he told the newspaper. "We pretty much go where our customers want us... and we're looking to open in pretty much every major American market."

Sullivan said the company's growth is fueled by the rapid growth in popularity of hardwood flooring.

The chain has about 130 stores and will open 30 more this year, Sullivan said.

The expansion wasn't a surprise to Chris Goebel, president of Wichita's Star Lumber & Supply Co.

"Wichita's a top 100 market," he said. "We knew they'd get here sometime."

Nonetheless, Goebel said his company will have to tweak its flooring business to compete with a "real national player."

"They're focused on product only, so I see them more aligned with the outlets like Jabara," Goebel said. "They'll come right at those outlets.

"They're definitely a force to be reckoned with. It may be that we have to adjust our product lines to stay with them."