Service men and women were returning from WWII, starting families, and buying homes. Walter E. Smithe Sr. recognized an opportunity to serve these new homeowners and opened our first store, Smithe & Shanahan, which sold appliances and electronics. Our shift to retailing furniture happened in the years that followed.

The 2nd generation, Walter E. Smithe Jr., joined the business and brought a new idea: custom furniture. Walt is heralded as being the pioneer of custom furniture in Chicago, a service that Smithe is still known for today. We believe that our clients should get exactly what they want without compromise. This is made possible with our custom offerings, coupled with our expert designers who guide clients through the process.

The arrival of the 3rd generation, the Smithe Brothers, brought rapid growth for the company. It’s said that Walter Jr. and his son, Walter E. Smithe III, sat around a map and charted where they would open next. The goal was simple: make it easy for clients to get to a Smithe showroom. That set the company off on a mission that holds today. With 10 showrooms surrounding the Chicago suburbs and Northwest Indiana and one showroom in Naples, Florida, our clients don’t have to travel far to find us.

The arrival of the 4th generation, the Smithe Sisters, all daughters of Walter III, brought new merchandising strategies, new faces in the advertising, and growth to a new market with the opening of our first store outside the Midwest in Naples, Florida. It became clear: our big brown trucks look great in the sand and the snow.