Located at 283 Central Avenue, a block from Rochester’s busy downtown train station, DL Home & Garden has become a staple in Western New York for home furnishings and accessories. Whether you are a homeowner looking to find a cozy yet modern chair for your office space, or you are an interior designer looking to explore over 60,000 fabrics and samples in the Designers Library on the building’s second floor, DL Home & Garden has something for everyone. Just be prepared to leave with more than you anticipated!
DL Home & Garden opened to the public in 2014 and resides in the old Cable-Wiedemer building, originally built in the late 1800s. Owners Bob Breissinger and Brian Coutu have brought their more than 80 years of combined interior design experience to downtown Rochester and aim to inspire the community to design stunning yet functional living spaces.
After an expansion in 2018, the retail showroom blossomed to 11,500 square feet with 40 curated room settings. Every item in DL Home & Garden – from a funky wall hanging to a staple living room piece – has been hand-picked and purchased by Bob and Brian.
In addition to the massive showroom, visitors can step outside into one of two patio spaces, complete with patio furniture and manicured gardens. Brian is the main gardener and cares for the outdoor spaces that act as a natural extension of the retail showroom.
Journey Through the Showroom
With a small in-house team of five dedicated and enthusiastic interior designers, each customer entering DL Home & Garden is greeted with kindness and a helping hand. Exploring thousands of pieces in the showroom – from furniture to carpets to artwork to perfectly crafted home accessories, customers can easily spend hours discovering the wonders within.
William Avis, Designers Library Manager, says, “We have the volume on the floor that gives people a variety of options.” From classic and crisp palettes to vivid and vivacious patterns, DL Home & Garden is here to make a statement. “We are not afraid to go with a vibrant, bold pattern on a chair, or a striking olive-green velvet sofa,” Avis says. Every type of aesthetic has a home in the showroom.
Designers Library
While DL Home & Garden’s stylish and chic showroom spans the first floor of the historic building, the second floor is home to Designers Library, a large studio that is an interior designer’s heavenly oasis of creativity and wonder. As the largest fabric library in the tri-state area, this library carries more than 200 interior design vendors.
When owner Bob Breissinger began his career as an interior designer over thirty years ago, he formed strong relationships with various manufacturers around the country. As he began carrying the manufacturers’ samples and building connections with other interior designers in the area, he started Designers Library as an auxiliary business that enabled designers to buy goods at wholesale. This, in turn, directly supported interior designers growing their own businesses.
Today, the library is open to any interior designer in the area and serves as a resource center to help designers grow and develop their projects. As a “one-stop shop” destination, designers receive assistance and advice from the in-house team.
Avis says, “Designers Library is a win-win for both the interior designers and for our small business.” The designers can utilize and explore over 60,000 hanging fabrics and book samples to use in projects, which directly supports Designers Library. Designers can also take comfort in knowing that all samples are from vendors’ most current lines.
A Union of Design & Inspiration
Access to both the showroom and Designers Library makes DL Home & Garden stand out from other home interior businesses. The seamless marriage of the two spaces allows interior designers and customers alike to turn dreams into reality. Interior designers start upstairs in the library with their clients, researching fabrics, textures, layouts, and color schemes, and then go downstairs and sample furniture or artwork pieces that fit the clients’ wishes.
Being able to create an interior design vision and bring it to life in the same space is quite special. With help from the small, knowledgeable in-house team, designers and customers are well-equipped to find inspiration for their homes. After all, it is at home where we find we can truly be ourselves and discover simple moments of joy and ease. The question is, why not do it in style?
283 Central Avenue | Downtown Rochester
585.225.4663 | Open Tuesday-Friday 10-5:30, Sat 10-4 www.dlhomegarden.com
