our buying group at first,” Bruce says,“ and then that kept expanding.”
At the same time, Bruce retained his desire to grow the business, and bought additional stores, owning five or six at a time. The buying group also flourished, expanding to 40 shops.
Success at that level required greater attention and responsibility.“ My brother decided that he just wanted to concentrate on the buying group,” Bruce says,“ while I liked being with the customers. So I took on the stores while my brother ran the buying group.”
A few years later, at the turn of the century, Bruce’ s son David came into the business around age 20. After selling several smaller locations, the family-run stores were down to two big shops. David ran the Chicago site, while Bruce was head of the Crystal Lake spot.
“ When I started at that store, I was at around $ 4.5 million annually,” David recalls.“ I peaked at $ 9 million. I doubled volume there within the first few years.” Growth was happening elsewhere.“ Around then, my brother was getting very aggressive in the buying group, putting stores everywhere and calling them‘ Cardinal’,” Bruce says.“ We were also called‘ Cardinal’. So we decided to separate and called our stores‘ Garfield’ s’, with our own identity, so that we could stand out.”
This big shift happened in 2015, and included new branding and signage for Bruce and David’ s stores. It also saw the return to adding locations, as the father-son team saw eyeto-eye on expanding the chain.
“ We felt that we could probably open up a new store every year,” Bruce says.“ And that’ s where we’ re at today, with 11 stores now. They’ re all called Garfield’ s, and they range from 3,000 to 15,000 square feet. They’ re in Chicago proper and also in the suburbs.”
Building out such a successful chain has been possible thanks to the family members atop the business.
“ I love the fact that dad and I can work together,” David says.“ I don’ t think that he and I have ever been in a fight. We understand that we can’ t agree on everything, but that’ s not a big deal. On my end, it’ s been great.” His father has cherished the opportunity.“ When he was a young kid, I didn’ t get to see him as much,” Bruce says of his son.“ Now, to develop a relationship with him in business and in other levels, it’ s very rewarding for me.”
“ And I enjoy working with David and all the folks at our corporate office, because so many of them are a different generation than me,” Bruce adds.“ They have different ideas than I do, and we fight it out every day and we really enjoy it.”
GARFIELD’ S TODAY
It’ s that corporate headquarters, located in Norridge, that represented the shift to a new, modern era for Garfield’ s.
“ When we had four to five stores, it was actually harder than today when we have 11 stores, because before we were
Father and son team, Bruce and David Garfield.
all running between the stores, whereas today we have the infrastructure for multiple stores,” David says.“ Now the setup is more corporate.”
Their strategy for opening new stores is dialed in. A good example is an addition that did not work. In 2008, Garfield’ s launched a new location in Niles.
“ We later sold Niles because there was a Binny’ s nearby, a Liquor Barn nearby,” Bruce says.“ The customers there only wanted to shop sales. It was hard to make money.”
Last fall, the company opened a new site in Naperville, a southwest suburb of Chicago.
“ That store is in an upscale neighborhood,” David points out.“ They’ ve received us very well.”
“ Location is key when opening a new store,” he adds.“ You have to know what the customer traffic is in the area. What are you near? What is the level of income for the area? If it’ s a new store opening in the city, then it has to be close to public transportation. Is there a parking lot nearby?”
Knowing the nearby competition is critical. Especially in a state like Illinois, where grocery and convenience stores can retail alcohol.
“ There’ s a liquor license on every corner in Chicago,” Bruce says.“ We have to be aware of where we’ re going in. Is there a 7−11 on the corner down the road?”
“ We struggle to find locations where there’ s not a Binny’ s, a Costco or a Kroeger’ s already right there,” David adds.“ Both in the city and the suburbs. It’ s a big factor, finding locations that are far from any larger competitor.”
Even if there are Big Box stores within the area, what helps set Garfield’ s apart is the enhanced customer service.
“ People come to us for the service and the recommendations,” Bruce explains.“ We’ re filling a niche. We want to find consumers who are excited about trying new items, who are excited about learning about new appellations..” www. beveragedynamics. com 2025 Top 100 Issue • Beverage Dynamics 9