Fire destroyed a Torrance furniture store, just outside of Los Angeles, in 2004. The three-alarm fire, which required 49 firefighters to put out the flames, burned designer chairs down to their springs and even caused the roof to collapse. A beautiful, state-of-the-art furniture showroom quickly turned in to a hideous eye sore!

The cause of the fire? Arson. Did insurance pay to re-build the furniture store? Fortunately, yes! But how much business would be lost as a result of this furniture store having to relocate while their charred furniture store was being re-built? Why can’t the fire insurance company cover the potential-loss-of-business too? I would guess that the cost for a new furniture showroom would only be a fraction of the cost of loss that this business incurred as a result of the fire.

It seems that insurance should take everything in to account, not just the property. This showroom was in a prime location on Sepulveda Blvd. in Torrance. What happens when Los Angeles residents drive up to a charred pile of rubble? In 2004, there was no such luxury of jumping on the Web via an iPhone to see if they store has relocated. Instead, they probably went to the Ethan Allen that’s a stone’s throw away.

Believe it or not, this furniture store was still in a temporary location in 2006. Contractors were still finishing the re-build of their original showroom – two years later! As if to add salt to the wound, it turns out that the only location they could find was in a strip mall a mile and a half away. Bear in mind, this is a high-end furniture store, not a discount “knock-off” establishment. Who knows how many of their existing customers passed by their old location and assumed they had officially closed their doors?

Fortunately, they’re now back in their original 13,000 sq. ft showroom. It may be state-of-the-art, but where are all the customers? Will this furniture store ever be flourishing like once was back in 2004? Insurance may have paid for a new showroom, but how about getting them to pay for new customers too?

This story, written about a Torrance furniture store, is true and was written by author Justin Verbaggio. The author has no official affiliation with the furniture store; however, he is a long-time customer.