STØR
Encyclopedia
STØR Furnishings International Inc. was an American furniture chain based in City of Industry
, CA, that opened in 1987. It sold European-style furniture and ready-to-assemble furnishings. Advertisements for the chain ended with the statement "STØR: without the 'E'". One such advertisement patterned after the "tastes great [vs.] less filling" Miller Lite
slogan featured two such tradeoffs, "furniture [vs.] accessories" and "low prices [vs.] style".
IKEA
filed a lawsuit against the company shortly after opening, claiming copyright infringement, and was settled in 1988 with STØR being forced to change the layout of their stores and advertising. STØR was acquired by IKEA in 1992.
Locations
Industry, California
Industry is an industrial suburb of Los Angeles in the San Gabriel Valley region of Los Angeles County. Home to over 2,500 businesses and 80,000 jobs, but only 219 residents at the 2010 census - down from 777 residents as of the 2000 United States census - the city is almost entirely industrial...
, CA, that opened in 1987. It sold European-style furniture and ready-to-assemble furnishings. Advertisements for the chain ended with the statement "STØR: without the 'E'". One such advertisement patterned after the "tastes great [vs.] less filling" Miller Lite
Miller Lite
Miller Lite is a 4.2% abv pale lager brand sold by MillerCoors of Chicago, Illinois, United States. Sibling beers include Miller Genuine Draft and Miller High Life.-History:...
slogan featured two such tradeoffs, "furniture [vs.] accessories" and "low prices [vs.] style".
IKEA
IKEA
IKEA is a privately held, international home products company that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture such as beds and desks, appliances and home accessories. The company is the world's largest furniture retailer...
filed a lawsuit against the company shortly after opening, claiming copyright infringement, and was settled in 1988 with STØR being forced to change the layout of their stores and advertising. STØR was acquired by IKEA in 1992.
Locations
- TustinTustin, California-Top employers:According to the City's 2010 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:-2010:The 2010 United States Census reported that Tustin had a population of 75,540. The population density was 6,816.7 people per square mile...
, CA - The first STØR location and one of the very first stores to open in the, then new, Tustin MarketplaceTustin MarketplaceThe Marketplace is an outdoor shopping center straddling the city limits of Tustin, California and Irvine, California. Although one centrally-managed shopping center, its two halves are sometimes referred to as the Tustin Marketplace and the Irvine Marketplace...
. IKEA began operations in its place after the buyout and continued there until a new IKEA was opened in Costa MesaCosta Mesa, CaliforniaCosta Mesa is a city in Orange County, California. The population was 109,960 at the 2010 census. Since its incorporation in 1953, the city has grown from a semi-rural farming community of 16,840 to a primarily suburban and "edge" city with an economy based on retail, commerce, and light...
, CA. The former space now houses a Best BuyBest BuyBest Buy Co., Inc. is an American specialty retailer of consumer electronics in the United States, accounting for 19% of the market. It also operates in Mexico, Canada & China. The company's subsidiaries include Geek Squad, CinemaNow, Magnolia Audio Video, Pacific Sales, and, in Canada operates...
. - City of IndustryIndustry, CaliforniaIndustry is an industrial suburb of Los Angeles in the San Gabriel Valley region of Los Angeles County. Home to over 2,500 businesses and 80,000 jobs, but only 219 residents at the 2010 census - down from 777 residents as of the 2000 United States census - the city is almost entirely industrial...
, CA - This location also operated for some time as an IKEA after the buyout. In 2003, it was replaced by a new location in CovinaCovina, CaliforniaCovina is a small city in Los Angeles County, California about east of downtown Los Angeles, in the San Gabriel Valley region. The population was 47,796 at the 2010 census, up from 46,837 at the 2000 census...
, CA. - TorranceTorrance, CaliforniaTorrance is a city incorporated in 1921 and located in the South Bay region of Los Angeles County, California, United States. Torrance has of shore-front beaches on the Pacific Ocean, quieter and less well-known by tourists than others on the Santa Monica Bay, such as those of neighboring...
, CA - Located in the former Ohrbach'sOhrbach'sOhrbach's was a moderate-priced department store with a merchandising focus primarily on apparel and accessories. From its modest start in 1923 until the chain's demise in 1987, Ohrbach's expanded dramatically after World War II, and opened numerous branch locations in the metro areas of New York,...
location at Del Amo Fashion CenterDel Amo Fashion CenterDel Amo Fashion Center is a two-level regional shopping mall in Torrance, California, USA. It is currently managed and co-owned by Simon Property Group....
, this store was the last location to close. IKEA used this location as a clearance center for STØR branded merchandise that it could not sell in its own locations. - Houston, TX - The Houston STØR location was a franchised location. When the brand was purchased by IKEA, this store continued operating under the same franchise agreementFranchise agreementA Franchise Agreement is a legal, binding contract between a franchisor and franchisee, enforced in the United States at the State level.Prior to a franchisee signing a contract, the US Federal Trade Commission regulates information disclosures under the authority of The Franchise Rule...
, becoming one of only a few independently franchised IKEA locations in the world.