Southeast Steel Appliance Warehouse has been family-owned since it opened in 1940. And there are many reasons why, three decades later, this amazing store regularly outsells the big box stores, including Costco, even Amazon. First on the list, as President Stu Kimball puts it, “Selling appliances is what we know. It’s what we do. It’s our expertise and core focus. Our ability to deliver superior performance is unparalleled.”
Southeast Steel sells all the major brands: GE, Whirlpool, Frigidaire, LG/SKS, Wolf, Sub-Zero, Bosch/Thermidor. Their inventory is vast, with all price points represented, from budget to ultra-high-end models. “We sell refrigerators from $400 up to $10,000 and $15,000. And our pricing throughout is competitive.” Also, Stu says, “We’ll match prices with anyone as long as they are local and we can verify the price. We belong to Brand Source, an independent buying group that negotiates with manufacturers to cut pricing down to big box store prices.”
More impressive than all that is the appliance expertise every salesperson brings to every transaction. Stu is very proud of that. “All our salesmen are appliance people. They know their products inside and out because we specialize in appliances and nothing else.”
If you’re looking for a fancy, modern showroom with lots of shiny bling, you won’t find it at Southeast Steel. Their big, three-level wooden building used to be a packing house in the old days. The plywood floor—yes, plywood—is at least 50 years old. “That floor has been here as long as I have,” Stu says. “And the big wood beams that hold up the ceiling are so hard they must be petrified by now.” Southeast Steel has a down-to-earth, homey vibe that is unlike anything else and adds to the unique charm of the place.
There are so many other things we could talk about: their generational appeal between parents and now their kids, premier customer service, lack of recorded phone messages — “We answer our phone the old-fashioned way.” But you need to see this place to really take it all in. As Stu says, “At Southeast Steel YOU get the best deal.”
