Leon's grows as it serves this market
Baine Johnston Furniture Ltd. was launched downtown St. John's in the early 1950s. Growing into a popular destination for furniture and appliances, in due course it began looking for room to expand and so came to Kenmount Road. Just over 25 years ago, as company President Chris Collingwood points out, “we had the opportunity to acquire the Leon's franchise for Newfoundland and Labrador – they are the largest furniture retailer in Canada.” So began here “a great partnership” in Collingwood's words. One good thing was added to another. Leon's was founded in 1909 in Ontario and now, in 2016, as the company makes plans to acquire eight Sears “Home Stores” it will have have coast to coast reach across Canada. There are currently 50 retail sites owned as corporate stores and as franchises. The Baine Johnston's Leon's here is owned and operated by the local company but it maintains a close working arrangement with corporate Leon's. As Collingwood explains, “Leon's has significant buying power and our stores here in this Province (Baine Johnston also has a Leon's store in Gander) avail of that. It means we can offer very competitive prices on our furniture and appliances and, of course, that is a reason for the success we have had with Leon's here in our home province. “At the same time, Leon's has a very positive approach to staff – they provide training opportunities and the calibre of our teams, here in St. John's and in Gander, is another reason for the company's advancement. Our people are trained; they know the products and they know the meaning of real service.” Collingwood also notes that most members of the Leon's teams “have been with us for a long time.” Baine Johnston furniture / Leon's found itself growing year by year. It became apparent not too long ago that it would have to leave the Kenmount Road premises. When the Elizabeth Avenue building was selected, the furniture/appliance retailer would expanded its square footage by some 50%!
According to local tradition, the Baine presence in Newfoundland originated circa 1780 but it is quite likely the company, which through several evolutions became the Baine Johnston of today, was active here some 20 years earlier. An extract from Memorial University's online “Maritime History Archive” notes that from its early days, Baine, Johnston & Co. was a fully functioning fisheries supply and general trade operation, importing goods from abroad and exporting fish to foreign markets. The full story as collected by the MUN Archive is a fascinating read.