Syracuse's Jacobsen's Oriental Rugs still holding out hope it will remain open after rug selloff

(original article from http://blog.syracuse.com)

By Bob Niedt / The Post-Standard

 

Stephen D. Cannerelli / The Post-StandardJacobsen's Oriental Rugs vice president Bruce Gianni (L)

and manager Frank Asef hold up an 1880s rug purchased by Colonel Jacobsen and put in his store

in the early 1920s.Syracuse, NY.

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The latter prompted @GordonParkhurst to tweet, “What’s up with Jacobsen’s Rugs? I thought they went out of business. Now there are new billboards on 690.”
I, too, noticed those billboards on 690 on Wednesday.

But I’m told they’re not new and they’re coming down. That’s according to Bruce Gianni, vice president of Jacobsen Oriental Rugs, located in the Learbury Building in downtown Syracuse.
“They were supposed to be down at the end of December,” said Gianni.

But FYI, Jacobsen’s is still running its huge sale that could make or break the rug dealer, founded in 1924 in downtown Syracuse, where it remains.

“We contracted with an outside company who is running the sale for us for another six weeks or so,” said Gianni. “We’re still optimistic we will re-open down the road, but I can’t say for sure. We haven’t closed the gap yet.”

Company executives said Jacobsen’s got into an overstock situation just before the Great Recession hit two years ago and people stopped buying luxury items.

Signs of an impending “closing” sale began to appear in customers’ mailboxes in the summer.
It became a full-fledged “going out of business” sale in November and the last day of operation was supposed to be Dec. 19. But Jacobsen’s is carrying on, and Gianni said if they can hit the right mark, the store may stay in some form.

“We’re close,” said Gianni. “We’re just not there yet.”