Hotels in Amsterdam

Northeast Home Industries closes down

The furniture store, Northeast Home Industries, at the 71,000-square-foot manufacturing former Wards Products Building in Amsterdam’s Edson Street Industrial Park, which was a joint venture of five people, closed down after a year and half of operation.

The company came into this building in 2008 after the largest manufacturer of car antenna systems in the world vacated the space in December 2006. The company had a retail-cum-wholesale trade and since it bought stuff like rugs, new fixtures, etc. directly from the manufacturer, it could boast of quality products at comparatively low prices, a model similar to Huck Finn’s warehouse in Albany.

Jeff Stewart, of Galway, the store’s manager, had said at the time of opening that he could gather the courage of opening a furniture store during recessionary times when many furniture retailers were already closing, because he no frills warehouse-style furniture stores were still necessary. But sadly enough, his confidence has been defeated by the slump in the economy.

Northeast Home Industries received a $125,000 loan from the Montgomery County Industrial Development Agency to build its inventory. Ken Rose, director of the Montgomery County Planning and Economic Development Department, said the company has never missed a payment, but still owes about $105,000.

“We’re sorry to see the company leave, but the furniture business is pretty tough in today’s economy,” Rose said.