Metropolitan Furniture, a beloved furniture store founded by brothers Harry, Sammy and Hymie Abramson just after World War II and shopped by generations of Houstonians, will offer liquidation discounts of between 30 and 70 percent in a store-closing sale that begins tomorrow at its 60,000-square-foot flagship at 7400 North Freeway.
“This is the end of an era for a landmark name in Houston furniture retailing,” said Mark Bannon, Director of Furniture Solutions for Tiger Capital Group, which is conducting the sale on behalf of the owners. “The business survived the Korean, Vietnamese and Gulf Wars, as well as several recessions and hurricanes, but disruption in the industry continues to take its toll on local furniture retailers. This sale represents a final thank-you and goodbye from Metropolitan Furniture to generations of loyal customers.”
During the liquidation sale, shoppers will find something for every room of the home, with strong collections of leather and motion furniture, stationary upholstery, and all styles of bedrooms, Bannon said.
Value, mid-tier and better-quality pieces are available. “Metropolitan Furniture is the kind of place where you can find a great-looking sofa for $399 or a better-quality dining-room set for $8,000 or $9,000,” Bannon noted. “The 60,000-square-foot flagship—the last-remaining Metropolitan Furniture store in the city—is packed with casual dining pieces, accent items, Oriental rugs and much more, all at liquidation-sale pricing.”
Metropolitan carries transitional, traditional, contemporary, mission, lifestyle and country furniture, with finishes such as cherry, merlot, black, oak and pine, Bannon noted.
The business continues to offer deliveries via a third-party service, but buyers will enjoy further discounts by arranging their own furniture pickups.
The Abramson brothers founded the business in 1946 when they leased a 500-square-foot space within the Metropolitan Grocery store. After a few years, the business moved to larger quarters at 8713 Jensen Dr., where it remained until 1982. In the interim, the flagship building on North Freeway was opened in 1978. Two years later, Harry’s son, Arnold, and Sammy’s son, Ronald, took the helm. The family subsequently opened additional locations at 6902 Southwest Freeway in 1982 and at 12161 Katy Freeway in 1990. The latter two stores were closed over the past few years in response to disruptive trends such as ecommerce, demographic shifts and the proliferation of national chain stores, Bannon said.
Pointing to Metropolitan’s 4.7-star (out of 5) rating on Google Reviews, Bannon added: “The extraordinary longevity of this business has everything to do with this family’s hard work and keen attention to detail. It’s why the breadth of the inventory is so solid, and why the flagship, built by the family over 40 years ago, is still so clean and orderly. The Abramsons were laser-focused on their customers, and this sale is a celebration of their 73 years of service in the Houston area.”
During the sale, the store will be open 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., Monday through Saturday; and from noon to 6 p.m. on Sundays.