Levin Furniture Coming to Avon Commons

Considering a couch? Come this summer, you'll have another option in town.

Levin Furniture has submitted plans for its new store at Avon Commons, taking the space where Linens-N-Things was. The store is expected to open in July, said Robert Levin, president of Levin Furniture.

At 37,500 square feet, this is a smaller store for Levin Furniture, about half the size  of some of the Pittsburgh-based business' larger stores.

The Avon Commons store will focus on best-selling lines such as Lane, Broyhill and Cindy Crawford Home. 

People want furniture that reflects their style, so there will be an emphasis on customization, from upholstery to wood finishes.

"We work with vendors who can ship quickly, so we can turn around an order within three to four weeks," Levin said.

That's one reason the company uses many domestic companies. Levin also touted the Ohio and midwestern companies that will be available in the store. Gascho, an Amish and Mennonite cooperative, offers solid wood furniture. Witmer, a Wisconsin company, makes case goods. The Sealy and Stearns & Foster bedding will come from the factory in Medina. The Tempur-Pedic bedding is made in Kentucky. Metal bed frames are made by the Mantua, Ohio-based Mantua Manufacturing Company.

Avon building inspector Kenneth Miller said that the plans, which were submitted last week, would likely be approved within a week or two.

Since the space was keeping the same function -- retail -- it did not require major changes like it would if the space was going to be something different, like a health club or grocery store, Miller explained.

Levin Furniture was making very few changes to the space besides cosmetic, Miller said. He gave approval for Levin to begin preliminary work such as painting and removing old fixtures and the display pieces left behind by Linens-N-Things when it closed in 2008.

The biggest change, Miller said, is in the electrical. Levin is changing the lighting to LED. LED lighting, becoming popular with Christmas lights, uses between 80 and 90 percent less electricity than standard incandescent lights.

While the LED system may be more costly up-front, Levin said in the long run it would be worth it.

"It reduces our carbon footprint, and cuts our long-term expenses," he said.