After 83 years in business, West Allis-based furniture and appliance retailer Colder’s has been acquired by Stevens Point-based Boston, Inc.
Terms of the deal, which closed this morning, were not disclosed.
Boston, Inc., familiarly Boston FAM, is the parent company of several Ashley HomeStore of Wisconsin locations and all Furniture and ApplianceMart locations. With the acquisition of Colder’s and its four stores, Boston FAM will oversee 21 furniture and appliance showrooms across the state, according to Bill Fonti, CEO of Boston FAM.
As a result of its acquisition by Boston Inc., changes to Colder’s stores will include a wider variety of brands and products from Sub-Zero, Thermador, Tempur-Pedic, Simmons, Serta and Purple; an expansion of Colder’s electronics offerings through its Flanner’s brand; a refreshed Colder’s look and feel; and significant store remodels to all four of Colder’s stores, located in West Allis, Delafield, Oak Creek and Grafton.
Colder’s released the following statement to customers regarding the deal:
“From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for trusting Colder’s for more than eight decades. We are proud of our history and even more excited about the future we’ll create together. Here’s to the next 83 years of serving the Milwaukee community. Together we will be bigger, better and stronger than ever.”
Boston FAM is an employee-owned furniture and appliance conglomerate. In 1888, Boston, Inc. was established as a furniture and funeral home company. In 1983, Madison-based ApplianceMart, led by Bill’s father Vince Fonti Sr., purchased Boston, Inc. creating Boston FAM. The two company titles are interchangeable, Fonti said.
Roughly 95% of Colder’s employees will be retained in the acquisition. The deal will initiate a “rebirth” of the brand, Fonti said.
“It’s an honor to take over these stores,” he said.
In 2019, Boston FAM became the first furniture, appliance and mattress retailer in Wisconsin, and the first Ashley HomeStore licensee in the world, to become a family and employee-owned company. The acquisition of Colder’s makes Boston FAM the largest furniture and mattress retailer in the state, according to Colder’s newsletter.
Colder’s Inc. was founded in 1942 by Henry Felker as a refrigeration service company called the Henry Cooler Co. An advertisement later misspelled the company’s name as Henry’s Colder Co., inspiring its current moniker. Colder’s branched out into refrigerator and freezer sales in 1946 when Henry’s brother, Harry Felker, joined the company. Soon after, Colder’s added clothes washers, dryers and ovens to its appliance selection at its first retail location at North 18th Street and West Fond du Lac Avenue in Milwaukee.
In 1983, Colder’s purchased the former Wickes Furniture building on Highway 100, which remains its current West Allis location. Colder’s was most recently owned and operated by three of Harry Felker’s children. Felker was involved in the business into his 80s, and passed away in 2011, according to past BizTimes reporting.
Colder’s stores will be closed from Wednesday, Sept. 10 to Friday, Sept. 12 for retagging.
