After 83 years, Grizzaffi's Furniture Store closes

After 83 years as a family-owned business in Morgan City, Grizzaffi Appliance & Furniture Inc. officially closed its doors Thursday and will sell the business to a liquidation company on Wednesday, Owner Frank “Boo” Grizzaffi III said.
Grizzaffi Appliance & Furniture Inc. was founded in 1932 by Frank Grizzaffi Sr., where Domino’s Pizza is currently located. The store originally was a car dealership and also sold appliances. It moved across Brashear Avenue to its current location in 1965 and the furniture business.
Grizzaffi said the business was the oldest independent GE dealer in Louisiana. As a family business, the store always had the next generation of the family ready to take over, Grizzaffi said. Frank Grizzaffi Jr. was in a position to take over the business when Frank Grizzaffi Sr. reached retirement, and then Frank “Boo” Grizzaffi III succeeded his father. Grizzaffi, 49, has run the business for 17 years.
“In my particular case, I’ve got two small kids, 7 and 11. There is nobody standing in line that’ll keep the business going,” Grizzaffi said. Frank Grizzaffi Jr. died Jan. 31. Grizzaffi also has two sisters who live out of town. Grizzaffi was able to work out a plan of what to do with the business before his father’s passing, he said. “We talked about what the future’s going to hold and this was not in it,” he said. “It’s hard to walk away from a successful business.” However, nobody is standing in line to continue the business, and Grizzaffi’s “interests are in a different direction,” he said. “We felt the first opportunity we got to sell the business, we should sell it,” Grizzaffi said.
Plans to sell the store were made well in advance of Frank Grizzaffi Jr.’s death, and the family had more than a year to make those plans, he said. The business supported a lot of community functions over the years and the family will continue to do that outside of the business, Grizzaffi said. “There’s a long line of people we consider our friends and customers over the years,” he said.
A couple years ago, the family was contemplating closing the business but chose to wait to allow longtime employee Rodney Grow, who has worked there for 51 years, to reach retirement, Grizzaffi said.
Grizzaffi will officially sign the contract with a national liquidation company, High Impact Marketing LLC, on Wednesday, he said. The liquidator will open the store April 20. “We entertained a few local options to sell … but it just didn’t work out,” he said. The liquidator will rent the building for four months to sell the inventory, he said. After four months, the liquidator will move out and work will begin to tear the business’ buildings down, he said.
The buildings, which are 40 years old, have plumbing, roofing and air conditioning problems, he said. “They’ve served their lifespan, and now it’s time to freshen up the town,” Grizzaffi said.
The family will have to work out a relocation plan for D J’s Music & More and Tower Loan of Morgan City, both whose buildings are owned by the Grizzaffi family, before the family can make any plans for what to do with the land where Grizzaffi Appliance & Furniture is located, he said.
“Then we would have to look at what type of tenants we think we can bring in to justify that type of expenditure,” Grizzaffi said. Grizzaffi hopes to be able to build a modern strip mall at the site, he said. “With limited land in Morgan City, I think we’re at a point where it’s time to start tearing some old buildings down and coming up with some new stuff,” he said.
Grizzaffi recognizes the business closing will leave a void in Morgan City for an appliance dealer, he said.
The store sold 3,600 pieces per year, he said.
Grizzaffi is talking with individuals and stores in the city to see if they’re interested in filling that void, he said.