Wayfair, the popular online retailer, opened its first brick-and-mortar store in Wilmette on Thursday. But before the doors officially opened at 10 a.m., hundreds of shoppers had gathered outside — some arriving as early as 5:30 a.m. for a chance to shop for furniture and home goods.
“I’ve been shopping on Wayfair for a while, and so I was so excited last year when I saw that [it was] coming,” said Renetta Turner, who arrived at 8:30 a.m. after making the commute from Chicago. “I would never miss this. I love this store.”
Turner, who works from home, took a few hours off to shop. She’s a big fan of Wayfair’s artwork and was primarily looking to find new art. But after seeing the breadth of the store, she decided to explore more items.
Wayfair executives and community leaders gathered at Edens Plaza to celebrate the two-story, 150,000-square-foot store’s grand opening at 3232 Lake Ave. The building also features a colorful mural by Chicago artist Alyssa Low.
Wayfair fills a vacancy left in 2018 by Carson Pirie Scott.
“We’re really excited about bringing … the online experience to the offline world,” Wayfair co-founder Steve Conine said. “We really have this vision of creating homes for every style and every budget, and I think when you walk through this facility, it just strikes you the breadth and selection and the assortment and the excitement we can bring to everyone’s home.”
Wilmette Village President Senta Plunkett said Wayfair’s opening represents a revitalization of the strip center and of Wilmette.
“This is a transformative moment for Wilmette,” she said. “Wayfair is poised to become the major economic engine that takes our community to the next level. We’re excited for the new tenants that will follow Wayfair to Edens Plaza.”
The retailer has hired more than 100 employees, according to Adam Katz, head of physical retail at Wayfair, which has a fulfillment center in Romeoville.
“Greater Chicago is a wonderful market for us,” Katz said. “Wilmette has a lot of young, growing families.”
Wayfair envisions expanding, Katz said, but its primary focus is establishing the Wilmette store.
He said the store offers the same brands and product categories offered online. There are 19 departments, what’s touted as a “dream center” for mattress shoppers and a design studio, where customers can get advice from designers. The space includes more than 80,000 pieces of merchandise and a cafe.
Within an hour of opening, the line at the Porch was already wrapped around the side of the store as shoppers purchased a cold drink or late breakfast after standing outside for hours.
Melissa Kaufman, of Vernon Hills, was first in line at Wayfair’s grand opening with her daughter and husband. She was a lucky recipient of the store’s grand opening giveaway: a $50 gift card for the first 100 people in line, available each day until Monday.
Kaufman said she wasn’t much of a Wayfair customer, but she wanted to become a big supporter of the retailer. She knew “a lot” of people who were excited about going to the store’s grand opening.
“It’s always nice to have a new store,” Kaufman said. “It’s good for the community.”
Evanston resident Darlene Cannon was in line around 8:15 a.m. She was looking for an ottoman, among other items.
“I love Wayfair. I love their products,” Cannon said. “I love that it’s close to home.”
The store is open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sundays.
Based in Boston, the company generated $12 billion in net revenue for the year ended December 31, 2023. Its portfolio also includes brands AllModern, Birch Lane, Joss & Main, Perigold and Wayfair Professional.
