Furnishing dreams

A pair of brothers with years of experience in the business have opened a new furniture shop in Castlegar

1 of 5Jas, Manjit and the staff welcome clients to their new location. — Colin Payne photo

2 of 5The new City Furniture and Appliances store sits on Columbia Avenue in Castlegar. — Colin Payne photo

3 of 5Jas (L) and Manjit (R) Natt are feeling comfortable in their new surroundings. — Colin Payne photo

4 of 5The main floor of the store boasts 16,000 square feet of space. — Colin Payne photo

5 of 5Customers can choose from a range of appliances. — Colin Payne photo

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Jas Natt had a picture in his mind of an ideal place to live and run a business when he made plans to leave Kamloops, B.C., to open a City Furniture and Appliances store in Castlegar. Now, just two months after the store had its grand opening, Natt said it’s everything he imagined it would be.

“I love it—it’s a dream come true,” Natt said. “It’s full satisfaction. Most of all, the people here are very nice. They’re making us that comfortable, that fast.”


Jas and his brother Manjit co-own and co-manage the impressive three-storey store located prominently on Columbia Avenue near the intersection with Highway 3. The store boasts a 16,000-square-foot main floor, with a 6,000-square-foot upper mezzanine—filled with all manner of furniture and appliances by top North American manufacturers.

Founder Ray Kandola opened the first City Furniture and Appliances store in Prince George, B.C., in 1973 and was later joined by Ruby Sharma and Ted Sandhu. The business has grown throughout small cities in the B.C. Interior, and the Castlegar location is the company’s 22nd outlet.

Jas and Manjit have decades of experience between them in their family’s furniture business and both worked at their cousin’s store in Kamloops before making the leap out on their own. They both have a love for the furniture business and are happy to be in business for themselves, despite the tireless efforts they’ve been putting into their new venture.

“This is a new and great opportunity to move into this area and open our own store,” said Manjit. “We love the furniture business and we love selling.”

They join United Furniture Warehouse, The Brick in Castlegar and Home Goods in nearby Genelle on the list of companies offering furniture and appliances to Castlegar and area residents.

When asked how their City Furniture and Appliances store would fit into that picture, Jas said they are an addition to the furniture business in the region and offer a value-conscious alternative.

“We have made an addition to the furniture stores already here to give people more selection in town . . . To give people the best value for their dollar,” Jas said. “Our line provides real value at real prices with no gimmicks. We have the best price and we want to give the best service in this area.”

Given the store’s strategically central location at a crossroads of the West Kootenay and Boundary regions, Jas said he’s hoping to draw customers from throughout the region.

The store held its grand opening on May 28, 2011, with free gifts for the first 50 customers and a draw for a 50-inch plasma TV. Jas said business has been pretty much steady from the get-go.

“We’ve been very busy,” he said. “We’re very happy with the response we’ve had from the public.”