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Meier & Frank adds furniture store to mall By Melissa Martin The formerly cramped Meier & Frank looked a little empty Thursday morning as employees prepared for the unveiling of the chain�s new Home Store in the Rogue Valley Mall. Crews worked though the night moving Mikasa china and Mitsubishi televisions from the old store to the new. They also spent the week arranging sofas, rugs, love seats, recliners, artwork and more in the location formerly occupied by now-defunct Montgomery Ward. "It will be like the uncovering of a Picasso painting," said Cindy George, manager of the Meier & Frank store at the Rogue Valley Mall. Shoppers can catch their first glimpse of the new outlet for Meier & Frank, a division of May Department Stores Co., this afternoon. Besides the new stuff, shoppers can find the "old merchandise" � mattresses, linen, flatware, dishes and kitchen items moved from the old store. "It�s Medford�s �Nordstrom,� but we cater to everyone," said George, who leads Meier & Frank�s 200 Medford employees. "I�ve been trying to get furniture for the past 11 years. I used to ask for 10,000 square feet, but I got 48,000. When we did it, we did it right." Corporate executives, including Tom Ricketts, director of the chain�s 15 stores, and buyers came to Medford to help with the opening. So did the company�s visual department � the people who decide where merchandise and signs go. Local managers Karen Szewc and Debbie Woodall and their staff worked around the clock Thursday night in preparation for the opening today. Shoppers, puzzled by empty shelves in the existing store, were eager to see the new one. "I�ve waited for Medford�s Meier & Frank to get a furniture store for a long time," said Terri LeBaron of Yreka, Calif. "My Mom said, �Let�s go to the opening tomorrow. I�m shopping for a love seat and couch and my Mom is looking for a dining room table." The ceremonial grand opening is scheduled April 12-13. The media has been invited to an open house today. "This will be the most state-of-the-art store we have in Southern Oregon," George said. The old store will be remodeled this year. Men�s clothing will be moved downstairs where home furnishings used to be. Woman�s World will move upstairs and lingerie will remain where it is but will have more space. The children�s section will also remain where it is. Every department upstairs in the present Meier & Frank will be expanded � from women�s petite clothing to jewelry and shoes. "Everything in the old building will be brand new and will look equally as beautiful as our new store," George said. That will be good news for shopper Rosemary Stevenson, who paused on her way to the Woman�s World department to scan the empty housewares shelves. "I hope they have more selection than we had before," the Phoenix resident said. "Even when you have to wear clothes made by Omar the tentmaker, you want to be stylish." Reach reporter Melissa Martin at 776-4497, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2002 Mail Tribune, Inc.