August 2014 NGN Spotlight: El Dorado Furniture Family

Next Gen NOW Spotlight

Andres, Suen and Luis Capó are the latest family members leading El Dorado Furniture.

They’re smart enough to rely on the experience of their fathers, but they’ve also got a few ideas of their own.

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Next Gen NOW Spotlight

Andres Capó, left is the distributions center operations leader for El Dorado Furniture. His cousin Suen is a buyer for upholstery and outdoor furniture. Andres’ brother Luis is the visual display leader.

Next Gen NOW (NGN) is a community of young, passionate, engaged industry professionals whose mission is to give a voice to the needs and goals of the up-and-coming future generations. NGN strives to educate the industry on how and why it should attract and keep young talent. The NAHFA supports NGN by facilitating meetings and educational opportunities and introducing the industry to its members through RetailerNow. Connect with NGN members at ngnow.org or on Twitter @ngnow.

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Next Gen NOW Spotlight

The Capós grew up around their parents’ furniture business, one of the largest in South Florida. Left, brothers Luis, Daniel and Andres Capó on a family trip to the U.S. Virgin Islands in 1983. Right, Suen Capó celebrating her sixth birthday at home in 1987.

: How did you get involved in the furniture

: How much do your parents respect your opinions on the direction of the business?

Andres: I was maybe 13 or 14 years old and didn’t have an Xbox

Suen: Oh, a lot. My father (Carlos) is the head buyer. I get to

business?

or games like that to play with so when Dad (Luis CapÓ) went to one of his stores we asked if we could go with him just to get out of the house.

Luis: Yeah, we’d do anything there, sweep the floors, vacuum, or clean the bathrooms—anything at all.

Andres: Little by little we got the passion and we grew into the

business. A lot of second- or third-generation kids might feel like they had no other choice but to join the family business, but we had an open menu of things to choose from. We all had different choices available to us and we chose to be here.

travel all over the world with him. I’ve learned a lot from him.

He’s very fashion forward. Back in the 1970s our store was completely contemporary so he was ahead of his time. I think I’ve learned so much from him that he’s learned to trust what I tell him.

: What do you guys do when you’re not working?

Andres: I love boating, fishing, going to a movie or a mall.

Luis: I’ve got three kids so we’re big into cruise ships. I love the southern Caribbean, but anywhere in the Caribbean really.

: Your family is originally from Cuba and your Suen: I go on vacations and go to furniture stores. stores are in South Florida, an extremely heavy Hispanic area.

Do you market heavily to Hispanics? : Really? Furniture stores on vacation? I thought vacations were to get away from work.

Luis: Surprisingly not much because we’re already known to them. The challenge for us is to get to the Anglo community and Suen: I know, I know, but the business gets inside you and it let them know were not the old-style, wood-only (cheap) stuff we starts running through your veins. You might get a lot of creative were 47 years ago. ideas from another store’s display or lighting.

Suen: We’ve got the largest selection of contemporary furniture

around. That’s the message were trying to get out there. We’re trying to target that message to younger buyers.

: That’s what every retailer is trying to do. How do

you connect with younger buyers?

Luis: It starts with the uniqueness of the pieces we offer. We think we’re different from your average retailer.

Andres: We’re changing up the website, too. We’re making it a little more modern and easier for younger buyers. These days people want to shop without getting out of bed.

: What does your family or loved ones think about a vacation that includes a stop at a furniture store.

Suen: Oh, they don’t like it at all. Our significant others shake their heads and say ‘Stop it. That’s not natural.’

: Why NextGen? Andres: No matter how big or small your company is, there’s

always going to be someone out there with a better idea for you.

We want to take advantage of that.

Luis: The older generation is moving on and the younger generation is taking control. To all these furniture stores passing on

Suen: We want to show you every piece of furniture with a 15-sec- being a (NextGen) member, I’d tell them to open your mind to ond video. If our ottoman can turn into a single bed, you should be able see how that happens without having to come into the store.

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see what the next generation can do. You made it work for your business, why can’t we?

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