Chuck Comeau Revolutionizes Entrepreneurship
from NetWork Kansas News, March 2008

You may not yet recognize his name, but Chuck Comeau has revolutionized the way entrepreneurs think about running a corporation by establishing the highly- respected home furnishings and design company, Dessin Fournir. What makes this accomplishment so incredible is the fact that the headquarters of Dessin Fournir are located not in one of the design meccas of Los Angeles, New York, or London, but in the quaint, rural town of Plainville, Kansas.

According to an article by David LaGesse in the November 12, 2007 issue of U.S. News and World Report, Plainville was Comeau's longtime home but Los Angeles became his initial base of operations when he launched his furniture business in 1993. However, as his company and staffing problems grew, he decided to move the main offices back to Plainville.

Plainville, a fairly typical rural Kansas town, has a population of 2,100 and typifies a community struggling to cope with the changing job market. At the same time, it provides an ideal central location for the headquarters of a high-fashion furnishings business. Of course, some aspects of the business are still housed elsewhere (the Dessin Fournir Companies distribute their product through fifteen showrooms spread across North America to reach professional designers) but the nerve center of operations is based in Plainville.

The life of an entrepreneur is never easy but Comeau feels that the sacrifices he makes are worth the rewards of raising his family in the same small town where he grew up. Comeau travels extensively; he spends approximately 38 weeks away from home each year, but his family and his business are able to prosper in Plainville -- even when he is away.

The life of a rural entrepreneur does involve sacrifices, but there are more tools available today than ever before for business owners. Technology in general and the Internet, specifically, enable rural entrepreneurs to "have it all" by allowing them to stay rooted in America's Heartland while connecting to the world of global commerce.

Dessin Fournir benefited dramatically when broadband Internet became available in Plainville in 2003. In this case, broadband Internet allowed the Dessin Fournir Companies to move all functions not related to the actual production of furniture back to the corporate offices in Plainville.

Comeau utilizes a variety of resources to make his Plainville operations not only viable, but successful. The question is: Why does he feel it is so important to work out of small-town Kansas? (and no, Plainville is not an undiscovered tax haven). The short answer is:  the people. When Los Angeles failed to deliver the right candidates to build his management and customer care operations, Comeau found people with the right attitude and work ethic right at home.

Comeau feels passionately about the importance of preserving rural communities. He encourages us in the testimony he made to the USDA, "grow your own."  As Comeau said, "It is no secret that rural communities are the heart of this great country. And for many of us, they're highly desirable and valued places to live. It's also no secret that rural America has been under siege....We must learn from these bitter lessons and shift our focus away from industrial recruitment as a means of stable employment and move towards homegrown entrepreneurship. We must do all that we can at all levels to nurture this unique resource (our competitive advantage) and make sure that developing entrepreneurial systems that hold promise for revival and transformation of our rural areas take root and prosper. We must give the heart of America a new beat."

As he spreads the word of his entrepreneurial success in rural America by testifying before government panels and in high-profile publications such as U.S. News and World Report, Comeau is helping others realize the great rewards that rural communities still have to offer. Not only has his success brought national attention to this matter -- he is also helping members of rural communities realize two things: first, they can succeed in business, too; and second, they might actually find greater success in their own rural communities.


For more information visit Dessin Fournir.