Manhattan Born & Bred, Laytner's Linen & Home Expands To Westchester

Furniture World Magazine

After two generations and more than forty years, Manhattan-based Laytner's Linen & Home makes a leap to the suburbs, opening its first store in Westchester County. Laytner's has earned its reputation as the quintessential New York City "home store" with big city taste, style and quality. The new store, that had its grand opening "home warming" on Nov. 15, is located in the Vernon Hills (aka Lord & Taylor) Shopping Center (680 White Plains Road) in Eastchester, New York. "Over the years we noticed a lot of business coming from old customers who moved to the suburbs in search of bigger homes for their growing families," said Mel Laytner, partner. "More than a few customers told us there was 'no store like Laytner's in their communities. So we started looking. After comparing demographics, we were not surprised to find that these communities lower Westchester were very similar in income, education and spending preferences to our Manhattan neighborhoods." Laytner's Linen & Home's new Westchester emporium, located along busy Route22 (White Plains Road) is the company's largest store with some 11,500 square feet of retail space which is larger than its two Manhattan stores combined. What makes Laytner's different than large national chains? "We do not sell polyester sheets nor fake wood furniture," partner Alan Laytner said. "We've learned that our customers do not want that kind of product." Unlike the big national home chains, Manhattan-bred Laytner's does not have to homogenize its merchandise selection to satisfy the broadest national tastes. Laytner's Linen & Home brings a refreshing presence to suburban retailing by offering a unique New York sensibility in its product mix. "Our merchandise is smart, sophisticated yet always comfortable and practical. We take tremendous pride in offering our customers quality merchandise, outstanding customer service and, as we like to say, at prices the rest of us can afford," said Alan Laytner. Laytner's Westchester will showcase much of the same merchandise mix and style found in its Manhattan locations with several important differences: "Bigger space means we can offer a greater variety of new items, including bed linens, fine furniture, gifts, bath accessories, and rugs," Mel Laytner said. "We will also tailor our merchandise to fit the particular needs and desires of our suburban clientele. For example, in the city, a sofa measuring more than 90 inches has problems fitting into elevators. No such issues here." Laytner's was started in 1961 by Joseph and Helen Laytner, the late parents of Mel and Alan Laytner. What began as candy store turned into linen shop of 800 square foot on the Upper West Side. In fact, Laytner's 6,000-square foot flagship store (at 2270 Broadway between 81st and 82nd Streets) is just across the street from that first, modest shop. "We became a 'home store' long before that phrase was coined," Alan Laytner said. "We started out selling sheets. So we needed beds to display them. So why not sell the beds? And then night stands next to them, and the rug in front of the bed and so on" Laytner's opened its 4,000 square foot Upper East Side store (237 East 86th Street, between 2nd and 3rd Avenues) in 1990. In early October, the company closed its SoHo location as a strategic business decision, enabling more focus on the Upper East and West Side stores, as well as the newest store in Westchester. Laytner's Linen & Home is a privately held partnership wholly owned by brothers Alan Laytner (42) and Mel Laytner (52). The company is headquartered in Manhattan at 2270 Broadway. The company also has a full e-commerce enabled website HYPERLINK "http://www.laytners.com"