Life Style Covers is a family business, owned by Arthur and Lillian Nazginov. In a family business, as in any family, the past creates the present.

“I’ve been around sewing machines since I was about five years old,” said Arthur Nazginov. “I grew up watching my father, who managed a sewing factory in the former Soviet Union. My father, mother, 3 year old sister and I emigrated to the United States looking for freedom and opportunity. We came here with fifty dollars each from the Russian government. That’s two hundred dollars  to start a new life here in America,” he said.

Nazginov’s story also has a very interesting beginning as it relates to futon history, apart from his arrival as an immigrant at fourteen years of age in October of 1979. “My mother worked in a hotel as a maid back then. She knew a man who drove a shuttle bus from the hotel to the airport. His name was Irv Wieder,” said Nazginov. Irv Wieder was one of the first people to really capitalize on the futon concept with Arise, and had over ten stores in the New York City area at his company’s peak. “Weider found out our family was in the sewing business, and when he started Arise we were his cut and sew source,” he said.

Back then futon mattresses were hand made, literally handmade. Unlike today's futons that are tapered edge or zippered, those were shot and sewn by hand in the middle of mattress. As time went by Arise outgrew their production capacity of hand made futon mattresses. Nazginov family lost their job when Weider needed more production and began to have his futons made at a local mattress factory.

(Picture above: (l to r) Joe Tatulli, & Arthur and Lillian Nazginov at Life Style HQs in Queens, NY.)

True Futon Pioneer

"My father Gavriel and I decided to stay with futons and began to build a retail business of their own at 548 1/2 Hudson Street in Greenwich Village, NY. The timing was perfect. Our store (Futon Gallery) was only the third futon store in NYC at a time. The only other competitors we had were: Bob Fireman's Furniture Gallery and Arise Futon." he said.

 “Our first store was smaller than five hundred square feet plus basement. Very tiny space, but back then there were only two futon frames made. One was the "combo futon frame" (L shaped frame) which we bought from Paula Sonner at Charette, these were very primitive frames that resembled a pallet and then we would also sell futon frames from William Brouwer, a total opposite - his frame was state of the art, award winning (A) frame” he said.
As time went by in addition to mattresses they started manufacturing their own hardwood futon frames in Brooklyn, NY. Nazginov’s business continued to grow and they opened several other stores in and around the New York City area.

"Since my father had three brothers and three sisters, most of our employees were our relatives in one shape or form. In fact, any Russian speaking futon store owners in New York City today owe their dues to my father.” he added.

In 1986 Arthur and Lillian got married. “Later that year we took a trip to Brazil to find a new source of futon frames,” said Lillian Nazginov. The couple opened their first futon store together on 484 Broadway, and then a second on the Upper West Side on West Seventy-Second street in Manhattan six months later.

Futons Covers at Wholesale

As time went on many other futon furniture stores opened in Manhattan and the competition for business was fierce. “Lillian and I decided to begin a new venture, manufacturing futon covers,” Arthur Nazginov said.

“We were in the right place at the right time,” he said. “Since New York City is the center of the cut and sew business, one can buy anything from thread to industrial cutting and sewing machinery, all within four city blocks.

Luckily Lillian and I found a two story factory building in Queens with an unbelievable window display,” added Nazginov. In recent past the building was occupied and served as Arise Futon main warehouse facility.  The display space is unique because it is at the top level of the two story building they are in. “The window is over one-hundred and fifty feet long and is visible at eye level from an elevated freeway which travels right past the display,” he said. “Over one hundred thousand cars pass by the display every day. We actually get calls from people who are stuck in traffic asking us how much the futon couches in the window cost,” added Lillian. “This building was a sure bet, we could not go wrong. We figured it would take some time to build the wholesale futon cover business, so to keep our heads above water we went into retail. The futon cover business took off, and the retail is still going great, despite the 8:00 am to 4:00 pm showroom hours.”

(Picture above: (l to r) Lillian Nazginov and Dave Purdy show off LSC’s huge finished inventory.)

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