Today we’d like to introduce you to Ira Lichtenstein.
Although Richardson Seating was founded in 1975, its history and product line goes back much further. After the end of WWII, Richardson Seating’s founder, Harry Richardson returned from active duty to his hometown of Chicago, IL. Around 1950 Harry decided to start a furniture manufacturing company. Harry recruited his brother Rueben and his father to form his family’s first bar stool and chair manufacturing company. This company (which is still in business today and a current customer of Richardson) specialized in commercial chairs and commercial bar stools for the foodservice industry. Harry sold his first company in 1973 with plans of retiring.
A few years later, Harry was not satisfied with retirement and decided to start a new commercial furniture company with his son in law Earl Lichtenstein. Harry decided to name this one after his family and called it Richardson Seating Corporation. Like its predecessor, Richardson Seating specialized in manufacturing bar stools, counter stools, and other retro diner furniture.
Richardson Seating’s first factory was located on Justine in the Fulton corridor. In 1983, Richardson Seating moved a few blocks away to its current 75,000 square foot home on Arthington Street. In 1984 Harry Richardson passed away and Harry’s son in law Earl Lichtenstein became CEO.
Earl ran Richardson for nearly 30 years before retiring and turning over the company to his two sons (and Harry’s grandsons) Ira and Scott. The two now continue to build commercial quality bar stools and chairs just like their father and grandfather before them as they grow and expand the company into new opportunities and expanded possibilities.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
During the recession of 2007-2009 we were only able to provide our employees with 28 hours of work per week. The competition from cheap Chinese furniture had become too much. We needed to reinvent ourselves and provide more value to our customers.
Richardson Seating Corporation – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Richardson Seating specializes in restaurant bar stools, restaurant chairs, and custom logo bar stools. We operate an upholstery shop, metal shop, and wood shop all under one roof. We make all of our furniture in Chicago using our highly skilled union staff. We have been in business for over 40 years and our furniture is still build the exact same way.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
Increasing our sales in 2009 up to the point that we could bring all of our staff back up to 40 hours a week.
Contact Info:
- Address: 2545 W Arthington St
Chicago, IL 60612 - Website: http://www.richardsonseating.com
- Phone: 312-829-4040
- Email: sales@richardsonseating.com
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/RichardsonSeating
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/logobarstools
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/richardson-seating-corporation-chicago
- Other: http://www.linkedin.com/company/richardson-seating-corporation
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
