Full-service trust

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This article was published 19/12/2024 (305 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

When Paul Penner calls Cunningham Business Interiors for service, it’s not unusual for company president Rob Cunningham to show up.

“You typically get sales reps, but it’s Rob that comes on site that day or the next day to assess what we need,” said Penner, chief operations officer at the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Manitoba. “It’s quite interesting when the owner of the business pops in every single time to make sure you’re happy with what you get.”

Penner also praises the Winnipeg company’s installation team.

“There are a lot of confidential items that are in the offices and every time he sends staff here, they’re incredibly professional and they really do understand the environment they’re walking into,” he said. “I’ve been very impressed.”

Staff at Cunningham take pride in offering that kind of assistance. The company has been a full-service office furniture provider since 1964.

Remaining customer-focused is what’s made the company a success, according to Cunningham, 59. He appreciates the confidence customers have in the company.

“The trust that clients put in us is what sticks out,” he said. “And that is shown in so many different ways.

“Sometimes, it’s clients that, for whatever reason, pay for an order right up front and they know they’re going to get their stuff. That’s trust. Some clients give us the key to their business and they say, ‘Install the furniture over the weekend — I’m going to be out of town.’ That’s trust; that’s really cool.”

Located in a 60,000-square-foot facility on Sargent Avenue that includes a warehouse and extensive showroom, Cunningham Business Interiors employs around 20 people. The company’s in-house interior designers, salespeople, customer service team and delivery and installation personnel are there to complete every project from start to finish.

Cunningham sources furniture from more than 30 manufacturers, some of whom the company has had a relationship with for decades. Many of them are based in Canada.

Clients range from office complexes to hospitals and from airports to community clubs. “No order is too small or too big,” Cunningham advertises on its website.

Annual sales are in the $5 million to $8 million range.

Cunningham’s father, Bob, started the business when he was 25 years old. Now 85, he shows up to the office almost every day.

“When I get older I’ll slow down,” he said with a smile.

Bob’s happy to leave the day-to-day operations to his son, but likes being around to offer advice when called upon. He’s also involved with a variety of philanthropic endeavours.

“I like to keep busy and have something to do,” he said. “I’m fortunate to be healthy. I don’t take it for granted.”

Born and raised in rural Manitoba, Bob Cunningham worked in accounting full-time in his early 20s and was a successful door-to-door salesman for the Fuller Brush Company on the side. He longed to make sales his full-time occupation and eventually started working for a company selling office supplies.

A year later, he struck out on his own and started Cunningham as an office supply company. Bob started offering office furniture to meet customer demand and when that took off, he made it the company’s focus.

Rob joined the business full-time in 1986, and has worked in just about every role imaginable. What he enjoys most about his work today is visiting the places Cunningham serves.

“We can wander through a manufacturing plant in the morning and be at the top of one of the downtown towers in a CEO’s office in the afternoon,” he said. “I’ve seen molten metal being poured from one vat into another … and I’ve seen the hospital MRI suite.

“It’s really an opportunity to see every kind of possible business that operates in our province.”

In addition to the furniture company, at different points the family has owned a liquidation business, lumberyard, construction company, orchard in southern Ontario and real estate.

“I enjoy the variety and I enjoy being with people,” Bob said. “When you’re out in the community, you’re meeting with people (and) you feel part of the conversation.”

To that end, both Cunninghams support numerous causes.

Rob is past-president of the Young Entrepreneurs’ Organization and Winnipeg Executives Association, previously served as a director at the Grace Hospital Foundation and currently volunteers for the SJR Foundation.

Bob has championed many causes, including CancerCare Manitoba, Upper Fort Garry Provincial Park, the University of Manitoba and St. John Ambulance. He has received numerous honours, including the Pearl McGonigal Award — a lifetime achievement recognition from the Grace Hospital Foundation.

A video the foundation produced when Bob received the award in 2020 featured testimonials from numerous colleagues and friends.

“He understands that to be a successful businessman, you have to be involved in the community,” said Jerry Gray, dean emeritus at the University of Manitoba’s Asper School of Business.

“He believes in the art of the possible, the art of the doable,” said former Winnipeg mayor Susan Thompson.

“When Bob puts his hand to something, I don’t think failure is an option,” added foundation chairman Jeff Coleman.

Bob says coming from humble beginnings and spending his earliest years on a small farm shaped his attitude toward community involvement.

“Coming into the city, I didn’t have much when I arrived,” he said. “But my parents taught me, as a young lad, to be kind to all the neighbours in our hometown. And it just seemed to carry through my life. I’m proud of the fact that it’s carried on with Rob and (daughter) Bonnie.”

This year marks 60 years of business for Cunningham — and Bob and Rob are pleased to have reached that milestone.

They look forward to serving customers in the years to come and continuing to honour the trust that is placed in them.

“We don’t take it lightly,” Rob said. “Our staff try extremely hard not to let people down.”

aaron.epp@freepress.mb.ca