Lefler's is among the institutions that has seen the whole cycle of downtown thriving, slowly losing business, then making a big comeback in recent months and years. This year the store celebrates its 50th anniversary in Conway.
Marty Lefler remembers coming to Conway as a child. The family lived in Clinton, where his father had a department store of sorts, Lefler said. His father bought the Conway store in the fall of 1958.
"The interesting thing for me was coming to Conway over the years with my dad," he said. "He would come to work. If it was summer or a Saturday I would come with him. There were always some stores I remember. The one I adored as a kid was Ben Franklin a five and dime with candy, inexpensive toys. I remember getting my first Coke Icee. As a kid, I made a beeline for that."
He also remembers fixtures such as Simon's Grocery and Massey Hardware.
"They (Massey Hardware) hung on a long time. I used to love going there," he said.
Lefler graduated from Hendrix College in 1979, and he got into the family business. He opened a store in Russellville, where he met his wife, Leanne. In 1981 or 1982, he said, he moved back to Conway. Now Lefler and his sister, Cheryl Lefler-Bennett, run the stores in Conway, Russellville, Harrison, Searcy and Batesville.
"I'm proud of the fact that we, even through the down years of downtown, tried to hang with downtown," Lefler said. "At that point the malls appeared to be taking over the world. If you weren't in a mall, how could you possibly be relevant.
"There's something to it. We grew up in a downtown, our home town of Clinton. There's a neighborhood community. I've been in the strip centers, and it's just not the same. I don't think you can recreate that sense of community in a strip center. You become very close to your neighbors here. It's very comforting. Conway's been very good to us in a time when you see the Colony Shops fall by the wayside and a lot of others."
He said the business has changed over the years.
"We are heavily into cosmetics, more diversified than just clothing," he said, adding that all stores have the same focus.
"Clinique and Este Lauder counters with clothing more like a boutique than a department store," he said. "It's very unique. A lot of people wouldn't expect to see the cosmetics in the same store with Citizen Jeans."
He added, "In spite of what appears to be turbulent times we do try to focus on value, even at a category that might be considered nicer goods. We try to have great values. We know people love a sale, and we try to do what we can to make it interesting, exciting. We keep the sales environment an environment we would like to shop in no pressure.
"Conway is on a roll. I hope it continues. Not just for us, but for everyone. It's a great place to live. We've enjoyed it."
(Staff writer Rachel Parker Dickerson can be reached by e-mail at rachel.dickerson@thecabin.net or by phone at 505-1277. Send us your news at www.thecabin.net/submit)
