O.P. Jenkins Furniture in downtown Knoxville is the quintessential family-run enterprise, and it has been for more than 100 years. The reins of the business have been successively passed down from generation to generation, and these days, they’re in the capable hands of Meg Troutman, great-granddaughter of store founder O.P. Jenkins, and her husband, Terry.
Troutman took over outright ownership of the store after her father, Bobby Sherwood, retired six years ago, following his own long stint as head of the family business. But for Troutman, the day-to-day goings on at O.P. Jenkins are all very familiar, having literally grown up in the midst of it.
“I grew up going to furniture markets,” she says, recalling the many trips she took with her father to acquire new inventory for the store. “I liked it, so I majored in merchandising at UT.”
After college, she and Terry married (they were high school sweethearts), and Terry went to work for his new in-laws. Even as Meg focused on raising their children, she continued to stay involved in the business by assisting in the buying of new merchandise. Now that the kids are grown, she has transitioned into the full-time oversight of O.P. Jenkins Furniture and is putting into practice lessons learned from her father.
“I’ve always loved the business, but I learned the value of hard work from my father,” she says. “He worked all the time, but when he was home, he gave us his full attention. Our store has always been closed on Sundays, because Sunday was family day.”
In addition to hard work, Troutman and her team have continued to exhibit other skills handed down from her father, including organization, a conservative business philosophy and solid customer relations. They are carrying on the practices that have kept O.P. Jenkins Furniture in business over the decades, even during periods when other downtown businesses floundered.
“Business is very relational,” Troutman explains. “During hard times, people have confidence in you, because you offer fair pricing and you service your product. It’s not just about the sale but about customer satisfaction. We’ve always made people important—not the furniture.”
