Cardi's is Latest West Main Biz to Set Fall Opening

One by one, empty storefronts and lots along West Main Road are luring new retail businesses to town, with Cardi's the latest to announce a fall opening with a new  mattress store at the former Newport Auto Center Mall.

Cardi's Furniture Mattresses is planning to open a 4,000 square foot showroom facility around mid-October and will focus solely on selling mattresses, said company spokesperson Benjamin DeCastro. Further south at the corner of Valley and West Main roads, Town Fair Tire continues building a new retail tire facility to open late October or early November, while further north in the retail complex near Forest Aveue, Spirit Halloween recently began prepping its seasonal store to open within the next few weeks in the former Linens n' Things site.

"It is good news for the town to see existing retail space being filled. It is also encouraging news for the local economy," said Ron Wolanski, Director of Planning & Economic Development for the Town of Middletown. "The property and that stretch of West Main Road is designated for general business (and) commercial use in the town's comprehensive plan and is zoned general business."

Regardless of the how the current economy is affecting other industries, Cardi's has steadily continued to open one ore more stores on average every month in recent months, said DeCastro. Cardi's recently opened a similar mattress store in Woonsocket and in Falmouth, MA, and is prepping to open one for Raynham, MA. In total, Cardi's will have 11 mattress stores after the Middletown and Raynham stores are completed, in addition to six furniture stores and "superstores."

The company has been focusing on expanding with mattress stores because that's seen the area of greatest growth, said DeCastro. Despite a down economy, he said many consumers will choose to spend discretionary funds on a new mattress versus other new expenditures, because they value sleep and getting a good night's rest, and consider a new mattress as more of a necessity than a luxury. For some people, a mattress purchase comes with getting married or moving in together, while others make the investment for health reasons.

"People spend a third of their lives in bed and they treat it as an important purchase when they come in to buy a mattress," said DeCastro, noting how the Cardi's sale team is trained to interview customers on sleeping habits, sleep partners' issues and health reasons.

Mattresses are also not subject to the finicky nature of consumer trends, noted DeCastro, so people are happier to make such a purchase knowing they will use the item for several or more years. "People don't care what color it is, or if it's in this year or out this year. If you want to change the colors in your bedroom, you change the sheets over the mattress, not the mattress."

Adaptability and knowing where consumer confidence lies has been key to company growth, said DeCastro. "We're riding the wave. This economy is what it is and people are adjusting, but things are coming back in some areas," he said. "Logically, these (mattress stores) are the easiest way for us to grow."

He added, "Once you find the right location and can bring the convenience of mattress shopping to these communities, these kinds of stores tend to do very well."

The former Newport Auto Center was an attractive location to set up shop on Aquidneck Island, he said, because the store will sit in a highly visible location in the thick of Middletown's commercial and retail center, central to all of Aquidneck Island on its most heavily traveled north-south corridor.

"We had looked at a bunch of different spots and this was available with a great location and great visibility," said DeCastro.

The new store will employ 3-5 sales persons and managers. Cardi's is currently accepting applications for all locations including the new Middletown location.

Said DeCastro, "The more we grow, the more this also creates new jobs at our corporate offices in Swansea to support the new store, then there's the delivery people we'll need to get our product to the customer, and you also have the factory that needs more help making the mattresses."

He added, "It's a big trickle down effect."

The Cardi's Furniture Mattresses in Middletown will be located at 1235 West Main Road at the former Newport Auto Center Mall. Store hours will be 10 am to 8 pm Monday through Saturday and Sundays from 11 am to 6 pm, said DeCastro.  

For more information, please visit Cardi's Furniture Mattresses' website.