Finding furniture for the price range that you can afford will soon be as simple as choosing between three stores throughout Hamilton.

The first of the stores to open ? Living Centre Ltd.?s high-end, designer store, Island Living - had a great response from customers yesterday

After a ribbon-cutting ceremony, customers flooded into the expansive showroom to browse the various furniture arrangements. Within minutes of entering the store, one customer said: ?It?s everything, I think, that people are looking for.?

Though the 8,000 square-foot showroom ? located on Front Street in the old Creative Interiors space ? is impressive itself, the company?s buyer and store development consultant Sue Kemp emphasised that customers were not meant to come in and buy only the items on the floor.

Instead, the showroom was meant to be a sort of testing ground for the customer to see and feel the various pieces and get a sense of what he or she prefers and what would work in his or her home.

The result is a sort of living catalogue where, instead of only looking at pictures and having to purchase furniture ?cold turkey?, the customer can experience the different options there are for couches and wood finishes and accessories, Mrs. Kemp said.

She added: ?I think I?ve heard it a hundred times today: ?It?s about time! Thank God?.?

Similarly, customer Susan Ternent said this morning: ?We think the shop is fabulous.?

Her husband, Michael, added: ?There?s nothing in Bermuda quite like it.?

Mrs. Kemp, who is also a freelance interior designer, said: ?People aren?t comfortable having to go to the US to buy furniture because they don?t know what they?re getting or the (measurement) scales are different. I know what works in the climate, and we have it all right here.?

The showroom boasts such a variety, one customer said as she perused the wall of over 1200 fabric samples: ?There are too many choices. I can?t make up my mind.?

Mrs. Kemp explained that a customer can come in and try different types of cushions for a couch, and then choose the fabric, and choose from examples of over ten different wood finishes, and the customised item will be ordered from the US and made within 30 days. One does then have to account for shipping time; however, with the volume of orders from the five stores under the Living Centre parent company, the frequency of incoming shipments is high.

Danny Moniz, the owner of Living Centre with his older brother and sister-in law David and Jan Moniz, said: ?We get consolidated containers every week, so we can do special orders in a timely manner.?

He added that The Living Centre containers are unloaded at the parent company?s warehouse, so delays caused by the overcrowded docks only minimally affects his company?s shipments.

The Moniz brothers and Mrs. Moniz bought into the company, then known as the Outdoor Living Centre, about ten years ago and have since opened Furniture Basics and Electronics City.

Around 1999, the Moniz family partners bought out the other partners in the company and have since bought Four Seasons Furniture, which they have made their midprice bedroom store.

Future plans have the Living Centre moving to the old Rooms-to-Go location in Mills Creek with an 8,000 square-foot showroom similar to the Island Living showroom.

With Island Living serving the high end of the market, the Living Centre will be for the midprice minded customer, and Basic Living (now known as Furniture Basics) will offer the lowest priced goods. The exact location of the trio of stores Basic Living branch has yet to be determined and may be either in its current space on Victoria Street or in Mills Creek, under the same roof as the new Living Centre.

Mrs. Kemp said: ?You shouldn?t have to compromise fashion and style for price. The idea is that Basic Living will offer very fashionable, very contemporary basics for students and young people who may be furnishing a studio or an apartment. Then you get married and decorate your first home at the Living Centre.?

Island Living is the ultimate stage for people looking for custom furniture and designer goods.

?We saw high end stores in the US and thought that would be nice to have one day in Bermuda,? David Moniz said during the ribbon cutting.

Mrs. Kemp said: ?The Moniz?s stores have always been in the midprice bracket and saw an opportunity with the closure of Creative Interiors.?

With the availability of Creative Interiors? prime retail space last January, the Moniz family?s dream started to become a reality. They approached Mrs. Kemp, who was the buyer for Creative Interiors, about helping them develop the designer store.

Upon clipping the ribbon and throwing open the doors to the completely renovated showroom, Mrs. Kemp cried out: ?Welcome to Island Living. Come on in!?