Pottstown's First Family of Furniture

The Lastick family has been selling discount designer furniture and floor coverings in Pottstown since 1973.

"It's a family owned business … We're into the second generation," said Marsha Lastick, daughter of the store's founder. Lastick's duties run the gamut from ordering to waiting on customers to customer service. Her brother Jerry Lastick handles the advertising.

He has much to advertise. The furniture store, located at the corner of High and Charlotte streets, is larger than it first appears.

"I think what surprises people is that they think it's a small store, but there's actually six different levels," Lastick said. That is roughly 35,000 square feet of furniture. Lastick estimated that she has 80 living room sets, 15 to 20 bedrooms and "tons and tons" of dinette sets.

If the furniture a customer desires can't be found among the sizable inventory, Lastick will find it for them.

"We do a lot of special orders and we discount those as well," Lastick said. "If they say, 'Oh I love that sofa, I wish it was blue and I wish that the back was higher,' we can find it. We have over 100 different manufacturers that we deal with."

With prices and demand both currently low, the time for buying furniture is now, according to Lastick. Furniture manufacturers are looking to liquidate excess inventory. "The furniture industry as a whole is down, so the manufacturers don't want to be stuck with overages," Lastick said.

"The supply is low, so sometimes people have to wait a little bit longer for what they want," Lastick said, "but now is the time to do it."

Lastick Furniture avoids the potential pitfalls of using an outside delivery service. The truck is owned by Lastick and the delivery personnel all work for the store. "That's extremely important," Lastick said.

Lastick's floor coverings storefront is right next door to the furniture store. The store sells carpet, hardwood surfaces, tile and back splashes among other flooring options.

The support of local, family owned businesses is important to Lastick. She believes there is a preconceived notion that such stores can't compete with the big box outlets when it comes to prices.

"The bottom line is we are so aggressive," Lastick said. "We are less expensive."

Lastick's father worked in Pottstown and moved to the King of Prussia area before opening his own business.

"He wanted to come back specifically to Pottstown," Lastick said. "He really loved the people in this town; his clientele."

The reciprocation of that love is why Lastick Furniture has been a fixture on High Street for over three decades.

"I think what has kept us going through the hard times is the really loyal customer base we do have," Lastick said. "They bring their generations in. I've waited on parents, then their children and then their children."