Meet the Founder of Lopi Stoves at Rich’s This Weekend

Thirty-one years ago, a young rock ‘n roll drummer named Kurt Rumens began selling wood stoves so he could pay for gas to drive his band to gigs.

Kurt examined the stoves he was selling and thought, “These stoves need heavier steel. They need to burn more efficiently. And they need to be prettier.”

He decided to do something about it. Kurt and his friend, Dick Miller founded their own stove company, Lopi Stoves, in the garage of Kurt’s Bellevue home.

Today, as president of Travis Industries, Kurt is still actively involved in the design and production of every Lopi Stove. Along with the Lopi brand, Travis Industries manufactures three additional brands: Avalon, Fireplace Xtrordinair,  and Tempest Torch Gas Lamps.

This coming weekend, you have the opportunity to meet this vibrant man who truly loves creating wood, pellet, and gas stoves, fireplaces, and fireplace inserts. Kurt will be at Rich’s Lynnwood store Saturday, October 22 and Sunday, October 23 from noon to 3 PM. He’ll be talking about breakthrough technologies in stoves and sharing other interesting and fun facts about stoves.

Factory Direct Sale

Rich’s is also hosting a factory direct sale this week, featuring products manufactured at Travis Industries. Contact a sales associate at any of Rich's 5 Puget Sound showrooms in Lynnwood, Bellevue, Tacoma, Southcenter, and Silverdale for details about the sale.

Travis House of Fire Tour

In addition to meeting Kurt Rumens at Rich’s, you can tour the Travis Industries factory, a sprawling 11-acre facility in Mukilteo. The House of Fire Factory Tour is free and open to everyone who’s interested (Note: Please no children under the age of 8 years old). Registration is required for tour entry – just ask any Rich’s sales associate to help you register for a tour.

More About Kurt Rumens and Travis Industries

The following posts from our blog will help you get to know Kurt Rumens better, and will give you a preview of what you’ll experience during your tour of Travis Industries.

1. A Man Who Loves Fire: Kurt Rumens, Founder of Lopi Stoves
2. Take This Hot Factory Tour – You Won’t Regret It
3. Travis House of Fire Factory Tour Gets Rave Reviews from Rich's Customers

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Visit  Rich's

For more details about our products and for directions to our five Puget Sound showrooms, visit Rich's website, richshome.com