EYE ON BUSINESS: Pamaro Shop Furniture follows the growth

Ray Osborn has owned Pamaro Shop Furniture for nearly 45 years.

He’s been in the business long enough to remember when Lakewood Ranch didn’t exist, so he knows how quickly the area is growing.

He plans to capitalize.

Pamaro Shop Furniture is moving its warehouse and office to Technology Terrace in Lakewood Ranch so the local business can more easily deliver its products to East County customers. Pamaro has a store in University Park and two in Sarasota.

Pamaro’s current warehouse and office, which have been in operation for about 10 years, is located near Washington Boulevard in Sarasota, about three miles from downtown. The new warehouse will be 21,600 square feet, including space for showing customers open-box merchandise, cancellations and returns. The office will be 4,000 square feet. There will be no showroom at the new facility.

Osborn expects Manatee County will give the green light for construction within the next month or two. The facility will cost around $2 million to build, according to Osborn, and will be constructed by Sarasota-based Charlie's Construction Company. Osborn hopes the building will be finished by the end of 2021.

“We’re just waiting for it to get done to go out where all the action is,” Osborn said. “Lakewood Ranch, I mean it's unbelievable what they're doing out there. … If you go out to Lakewood Ranch, you can drive forever.”

Osborn decided to move his company’s warehouse and office from Sarasota to Lakewood Ranch about two years ago because he wants to follow the population growth. Pamaro used to do a lot of business on Bradenton’s and Sarasota’s barrier islands, but the customer base is shifting east.

Changing tastes also factor into Pamaro’s shifting customer base. For example, Osborn thinks many people in downtown Sarasota, especially in the city’s high rises, now prefer modern furniture.

Osborn said his company’s style of furniture is suited to the homes in Lakewood Ranch and similar communities. He said he would take pride in serving a community that is aesthetically pleasing and well-planned, which he believes Lakewood Ranch is. He cited Lakewood Ranch’s oft-touted status as one of the best-selling master planned communities in the country.

“I'm glad to be a part of it,” Osborn said. “There's lots of beautiful warehouse property out there. It's a wonderful place to live now.”

Another advantage of Technology Terrace’s location is its proximity to I-75. The new warehouse will be less than five miles from the interstate, which allows delivery trucks to more easily reach customers as far north as Sun City and as far south as Boca Grande.

Pamaro was started by Osborn’s aunt, Margaret John, in 1950. Osborn bought the store in 1976, when he was 33 years old. Originally, the store sold only wicker products made of rattan, a round and solid vine species often used in wicker weaves. Today, Osborn said the store mostly sells casual furniture, often with a floral design.

“I’ll work until I'm 80, and then I'm gone,” Osborn said, before changing his tune. “But I don’t have a plan. I kind of like what I do.”