Millman’s prepares for grand opening

Millman’s Appliances will open a new era Saturday, Sept. 28.

At 8:30 a.m., the venerable store will leave its home of 45 years in Rehoboth Beach and open its new, larger home on Route 9 in Lewes.

Owner Gary Chorman said the new store would provide easier access for customers and a larger showroom than the Route 1 location where Millman’s has been since its start in 1969.

“The traffic has gotten horrendous on Route 1 in the summertime. I mean, if your customers can’t get to you by 10:30, 11 a.m., they’re not coming. We felt that affords the box stores a significant opportunity we weren’t able to give,” he said. “Being in the countryside on Route 9 is an ideal situation for us. We’ve grown our showroom. We’ve grown our opportunities.”

Chorman said the new store has additional parking, 17 spaces compared to 7 at the old store, and a more streamlined showroom. He said at the old location, there were basically five separate rooms acting as showrooms. At the new place, the floor plan is more open, allowing a more streamlined presentation, Chorman said.

“We are definitely improving our operations,” he said. “We technically outgrew our operations there.”

Millman’s has over 35 brands, including products from companies such as GE, Frigidaire, Whirlpool, Maytag, Samsung and LG. While the focus of the new store is the 3,200 square foot showroom, Millman’s will also have a second floor conference room and office space, a luxury Chorman said will lead to better and more efficient business.

Millman’s traces its roots back to 1969, when Dick and Shirley Millman began operating a Montgomery Ward catalog center in Rehoboth, Chorman said. After nearly 20 years, Montgomery Ward shut down its catalog business in 1986, but the Millmans pressed on, selling appliances, he said.

Chorman bought the business in 2003, having worked for the Millmans both when it was a catalog store, while he was in high school, and later in 2002, one year before he bought the business.

The opening of the new store will be a daylong event, with a pig roast and barbeque provided by Emings Barbeque of Millsboro, and no less than six different radio stations broadcasting live, Chorman said.

“We’re just going to have a big celebration,” he said. “We’re going to have door prizes. We’re going to have showrooms open. We’re going to have factory reps here. We’re going to have a ball.”

The new store’s interior was entirely the work of Millman’s staff, Chorman said, with employees putting in five to seven hours after normal working days and long hours during nonbusiness days over a 20-week span to help the new place come together.

One thing that will not change with the new store, Chorman said, is the friendly and knowledgeable sales staff, free 10-year warranties, rebates, repairs and 12-to-18 month financing.

“We’re always looking to give back to our consumer,” he said. “I think for a small company we offer a lot of value for our consumer. Our community has been real good to us, and we continue to give back to it any way we can.”

As for kicking off this new era of Millman’s, Chorman is ready to go.

“Everybody is really excited about this new opportunity,” he said.

Millman’s Appliances is open at 28841 Lewes-Georgetown Highway Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Wednesdays and 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays. The store is closed Sunday. For more information, call 302-645-6215.