During the 1970s, Mark Lynch, president of Jeff Lynch Appliances, Electronics, Bedding and Furniture, would recall his father, Jeff, selling his products during the day, coming home in the evening, hurriedly eating his dinner and going back out to deliver the products he’d sold that day.
These days, it’s a lot different for Mark Lynch, 63, who’s taken the company far beyond his father’s humble beginnings.
Post-WW2 beginnings
Jeff Lynch, who died in 1997 at the age of 76, got his start in the furniture industry before World War II, when he worked as a manager with Rhodes Furniture in Greenville. He volunteered to fight in the war, and when he came back home, he was welcomed back to Rhodes.
Shortly after he came back home from the war, he and his wife, Mary, moved to Burlington, North Carolina, for a short time to start an appliance store before returning to Greenville. In 1951, Lynch opened the first location of Jeff Lynch Appliances, on Laurens Road approximately where the Land Rover Dealership now stands.
Modern technology
Back then, customers had less of a selection when it came to appliances, as manufacturers only made a couple of models. In the post-war boom of the 1950s, many consumers hadn’t been able to try out the new electric washing machines. So salesmen would go door-to-door demonstrating them. Business took off.
“Everybody said, ‘We’re gonna keep this,'” Mark Lynch said. Before long, Amana appliances made a frost-free refrigerator that was a new innovation. At the time, Jeff Lynch Appliances was a big Amana and Maytag dealer. Lynch wanted the company to sell the best-quality brands, and those two were the best on the market. Later, Amana sold an independently-controlled refrigerator and freezer that would still beat anything manufacturers sell today, he said.
He also remembers the advent of the microwave oven, another innovation from Amana called the Radarange. He remembers “selling the heck” out of the easy-to-clean smooth-top cooktops.
TVs have evolved, too, from large, black-and-white consoles in wooden cabinets to the 55-inch (and larger) flatscreens of today.
A family business
Lynch said his introduction to the family business began with him working odd jobs when he was just nine or 10 years old. Later, before he learned to drive, he would join experienced drivers and to learn what it took to install appliances in customers’ homes. He often worked summers, weekends, and breaks while in college.
Later, Lynch helped with sales, how to manage the books, and learning how inventory and accounts receivable were handled. In college, he majored in advertising, coming up with a whole new plan for the business when it was time for him to take over for good in 1985. Lynch’s plan was to drive the business, commit to a budget and stick to a plan to grow.
He said he focused on TV commercials, newspaper ads, direct mail — nailing down a consistent advertising plan for the business. “We had a plan of attack to make this thing rock ‘n’ roll,” Lynch said.
As a result, the business has grown by about 30 times from where his father left it.
“I can remember two or three of us selling, dad only worked a few days a week, and we had a pickup truck,” Lynch said. He recalls the original store having 3,200 square feet. Now, the company operates out of a 132,000-square-foot showroom situated on a 17-acre lot and employs 100 people.
Stevie Lynch, Lynch’s daughter and vice president of marketing for the company, has grown up with the company and has been able to explore every aspect of the business.
“When things seemed impossible, my parents always taught me that there was another way to solve something,” she said.
Lynch has no plans to expand at the moment, but hasn’t ruled it out. He’s seen a lot of mom & pop stores and big-box retailers go from a number of locations to bankruptcy, the victim of their own ambition.
Online retail not a threat
When it comes to the rise of online retail, Lynch doesn’t see a huge impact to his business. It’s easier for customers to understand the functionality and benefits of appliances in person with someone to guide them and offer their expertise. Jeff Lynch Appliances will sell online only after a salesperson contacts the customer and qualifies the sale.
“Service is everything,” he said. “People are getting ripped off by the Internet.”
While the store’s raison d’être was appliances and televisions, they branched into selling mattresses around 1995. Lynch bought additional warehouse space, added a bedding showroom and became a full-fledged bedding dealer.
At the same time, he started experimenting with selling recliners and leather sectionals. By the time the company had moved to its current location, they had the largest Lane showroom in the world.
“That was pretty awesome,” he said.
Faith and family
While the business has been a priority for Lynch, he said he’s always been working for a higher power.
“God is the owner of our business,” he said. He said he prays every night before he leaves, thanking God for each day. He keeps his faith close to him, and has a chapel in the showroom where he and employees meet every Wednesday and Friday.
The Lynch family works at the business, and many of the customers have become like family, with third and fourth generations becoming customers. Mark’s wife, Sarah, is head of the furniture design department; his son, Cole, is vice president of operations; and his daughter, Stevie, is vice president of marketing. Employee turnover doesn’t mirror other retail businesses, with salespeople having an average of 18 years’ seniority with the company, and some have stayed 25-30 years. He said customers are shocked when the same person helps them with a purchase 5-10 years after serving them the first time.
Stevie Lynch said many of the employees at the store have known her since she was born.
“Our Jeff Lynch employees have become my second family,” she said.
“I’m so grateful to have grown up with an awesome father who taught me everything he knows,” he said. “And we keep God first.”
Jeff Lynch timeline
- 1951: Founded Jeff Lynch on Laurens Road approximately where the Land Rover dealership is now.
- 1967: Relocated to building on Laurens Road where Cowart Awards now occupies.
- 1968-69: Relocated to Lake Forest Shopping Center.
- 1985: Mark Lynch takes over managing business.
- 1993: Moved up the street near the corner of East North Street and North Pleasantburg Drive near Tate’s Interiors.
- 2006: Moved to current location at 17 Roper Mountain Road in Greenville.
