Jabaras filled whole block with store

Tom Jabara says the only person who thought his business would someday swallow up a whole city block was his late brother, Bill.

"He was the dreamer," Jabara said of his brother and former partner. "We had to figure out how to make it happen."

Figure it out the Jabaras did. The carpet and home improvement merchandise company, which marked its 40th anniversary in business last year, today occupies the block bounded by Broadway and Topeka between 17th and 18th streets.

About 75,000 square feet of display and storage space sit under various roofs. Inside the biggest, the scent of fabric combined with the sight of huge area rugs hung vertically on moveable racks and thick rolls of carpet stacked high overhead make it seem like a modern version of an Old World rug market.

Jabara's got its start on a much more modest level in 1970 when Tom's father, George, who'd been in the grocery and construction trades, opened a damaged-freight store on 18th Street. Jabara had gone in with some other businessmen buying all kinds of distressed goods from warehouses, liquidations and other sources. Jabara found he could make a profit as long as he sold low and bought even lower.

Tom went to work for his father as a high school student in 1970. Bill joined after George's death in 1978. Realizing that flooring was selling better than any other item, the brothers opened Jabara's Carpet Outlet in 1985, keeping the damaged-freight business going as well.

From the start, the Jabaras strove to have the biggest inventory of carpet and flooring in town. That went against the usual way stores sold flooring, which was through samples that people ordered from. The Jabaras' idea was to amass a big, attractively priced inventory from which practically anyone could find something they liked.

Tom concentrated on buying and selling, while Bill was in charge of marketing. "It made a nice merger" of the brothers' talents, Tom said. Jabara's colorful newspaper and TV ads have been staples in Wichita for decades.

The Jabaras added the third leg of their business, a special order showroom called the Carpet Galerie, in 1995.

Today, Tom's wife, Susan, brother, George, and sons Josh and Jason — stars of the current Jabara's commercials — are in charge of various aspects of the business.

Tom and George say a key to the company's success was plowing any profits back into the business in the early years. The business has changed some since then. Jabara's buys most of its flooring from manufacturers rather than distributors. Hard-surface flooring has become more popular, which is good for the area rug business, but carpets remain the cornerstone of the business.

The store sells to a lot of do-it-yourselfers. Rental property owners are a big customer segment. Jabara's also offers installation through subcontractors, and can recommend independent installers as well.

"Originally the key was to buy it right and you could sell anything," Tom said. "Now it's our depth and selection as much as price. But price is still important."

Asked what kind of customer the store attracts, George answers with another question: "Who would you say likes to save money?"

As for the sprawling collection of buildings filled with inventory and displays, the Jabaras say it was years in the making.

"It would be ridiculous to try to duplicate this now," Tom said.

This story was originally published January 13, 2011 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Jabaras filled whole block with store."