Photo caption: Here are a few of the Hearth & Home of Ithaca pros (left to right) Matt Slowey, Jay Felli, Julie Langenbacher, Jeff Loik and Al Gillis.
The blazing hot mid-summer heat does nothing to slow down the buzz at Hearth & Home of Ithaca. With only five years of ownership under his belt, owner Jay Felli has focused his abundant entrepreneurial energy to position this 30- year old full service chimney and hearth establishment as a leading Morso wood stove dealer in upstate New York.
Jay says, "When I purchased this business there was one or two Morso units scattered in the store. That was before our home design consultant Julie developed a passion for the Morsø line and we now have a dozen units on display."
Schooled in architectural design, Jay has a good understanding of home design trends and has assembled a dream team of factory-trained technicians to provide installation, maintenance, chimney cleaning and repair, including complete construction of masonry and metal chimneys. Sean Rice , Tim Reynolds, Charlie Fish and Bill Hewes handle any issues in the field. Al Gillis supports the entire staff with his vast knowledge of stoves, fireplaces and the various parts. He also has a unique knack for finding what is needed to maintain stoves that are long since out of manufacturing.
Hearth & Home of Ithaca’s sales force is also highly qualified. Julie Langenbacher brings interior design to the table and spends quality time with customers designing their hearth. Matt Slowey has the environmental science knowledge and pays particular attention to developments in fuels and efficiency.
Being in top form is especially important in Ithaca, home to Cornell University, an Ivy League school of over 20,000 students, and Ithaca College. This academic hub houses highly-educate consumers who do their homework and want the best products, services, and buying experience. To edge out the competition, Felli and his team need to bring on their “A” game every day, year round.
To keep things fresh the Hearth & Home of Ithaca team are presently working on new first floor displays, organizing summer cooking classes and a Fall open house scheduled for the last weekend in September, and constructing a class-A chimney to vent a soon-to-be installed Monica Ritterband 7644 wood stove. That’s in addition to a fully booked schedule of summer installations, chimney cleaning and repair appointments.
Fortunately, the days are long this time of year so that Felli can whittle down his to-do list to enjoy a second well-earned Morso Dealer Denmark trip come August.
You can always visit Hearth & Home of Ithaca online http://www.hearthhome.com/ or stop by their store on 726 West Court Street, Ithaca, NY 14850-3296.
