HUBBARD -- A framed copy of a 1935 newspaper ad hanging on an office wall announces, "We Want 50

HUBBARD -- A framed copy of a 1935 newspaper ad hanging on an office wall announces, "We Want 50 Used Suites." The former C.R. Stewart & amp; Sons furniture store encouraged shoppers to trade in their used living room suites for $25 -- money they could keep or put toward buying a new set of furniture.
The styles of couches and chairs in the ad look similar to many pieces of merchandise today's Stewart Furniture sells.
The store, located at its same Main Street location since the Stewart family built it in 1918, specializes in early American and traditional styles of sofas, recliners, living and dining room sets and other merchandise, said its vice president, Sally Severa.
Despite the accent being on the traditional, Stewart Furniture stays current with changes in furniture tastes, needs and trends.
"Furniture is a lot like clothing but moves a little slower in terms of what's popular. It doesn't change yearly like clothes," Severa said.
Ownership changes
The Sarisky family bought the business in 1976, and it is now operated by Severa; her brother, Mark Sarisky; her sister, Polly Jones; and her mother, Mitzie Sarisky.
Much of what Severa learned about the furniture business she picked up by watching and working with her mother and late father, Raymond.
"My parents both worked for [the Stewart family] in the late 1940s," Severa said. "I learned it's a hands-on business, and Mr. Stewart asked my parents to keep the [Stewart] name in the business."
As a result, the four work as a team, Severa pointed out, adding her brother handles many of the deliveries, her sister does much of the bookwork and her mother "oversees everything. She's still the boss."
Each of the four floors the family oversees has its own theme, such as the third floor, where shoppers can find traditional bedroom furniture, much of which is designed to fit into smaller rooms.
Various pieces of newly arrived wicker furniture blend in with the beds, nightstands and other items, and each floor features smaller recliners, armrests and 70-inch highback sofas popular 25 years ago that allow shorter people to get up and down more easily. Oval-shaped pictures and other hard-to-find accessories complement each floor.
For people who can't or don't want to use the steps to get from floor to floor, a hand-operated elevator is available. The platform elevator, which is about as old as the store itself, has a 1,000-pound capacity, Mark Sarisky explained.
Severa said the family has few plans to change what she sees as a Hubbard mainstay. "We don't want to expand. We want to stay a small family-owned business," she said.