Here’s a bit of birthday news that deserves some attention. Leon’s Furniture is celebrating its 100th year in business. That makes it the oldest Canadian-owned home furnishings retail chain. Three cheers for that! The original store was founded in 1909 by Ablan Leon. He came to Canada from Lebanon with almost nothing, but worked hard and watched his dry-goods business in Welland, ON. flourish into a successful family-run furniture store. (Take a look at the pic at the left for a glimpse into how the store used to look, and the pic below for some of its current offerings.) Today, the chain has 64 Leon’s Home Furnishing SuperStores across the country, and owns Appliance Canada, which caters to the high-end building trade. The family tradition continues — Terry Leon, Ablan’s grandson, is president and CEO. To weather 200 years in the difficult Canadian retail landscape is quite an accomplishment; and the family is to be congratulated. In fact, I think I'll honour this great Canadian retail giant by going to visit one of the stores this weekend!
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