Green Front Furniture exec buys Monument Avenue mansion for $2M

When Den Cralle commences furnishing the Mediterranean-style mansion he recently purchased on Monument Avenue, he’ll be coming at it with an entire furniture business at his disposal.

The president and co-owner of Farmville-based Green Front Furniture won a bidding war this spring for 2315 Monument Ave., a nearly century-old house he’s likely to use not only as a residence but also as a virtual showroom of sorts, highlighting the company’s inventory of furniture, rugs and home décor items.

As the 7,200-square-foot home won’t most probably to drop-ins off the road, Cralle is likely to document a renovation of the home’s interiors and create image and video content for Green Front’s social media channels, where in fact the 30-year-old can be an active presence.

“It’s likely to be my home, but we will put it to use for content,” Cralle said. “From Instagram to the documentary to product shots, Facebook Live. It’s going to be considered a living, breathing thing.”

Cralle envisions the effort attracting attention from national home design publications and media outlets, with Green Front customers potentially participating by voting on various design choices.

“We’re going to begin putting out YouTube content when we get it, but it could definitely be something where somebody could pick it up,” Cralle said. “Not saying they'll, but you want to at least give ourselves a go to get some good publicity.”

Cralle purchased the house in mid-April for $2.29 million, beating out competing offers that came in after the house had been in the marketplace for a year.

The listing expired following the seller, who never moved in to the house after buying it six years ago, died in February 2020, said Joyner Fine Properties agent Betsy Dotterer, who represented Cralle in the purchase.

The death put the home in the hands of a trustee, which Dotterer said prolonged the process.

“In cases like this, it had to be handed over to a trustee of the estate. It took time for this to go from seller to trustee,” Dotterer said.

Richmond property records list owner as Bosco LLC, which paid $2.22 million for the home in 2015. The town lately assessed the quarter-acre property at $2.13 million.

Debbie Gibbs, Bo Steele and Lucy Williams of The Steele Group | Sotheby’s International Realty had the listing. Steele said owner had planned a significant renovation of the house before relocating but ultimately decided to put it on the market.

‘These kinds of houses just don’t pop-up every day’

Totaling seven bedrooms, four bathrooms and two half-baths, the nearly century-old house was built-in 1924 and was created by William Bottomley, a noted architect whose work in Richmond includes several homes along Monument.

The three-level home carries a foyer with curved staircase, arched doorways, a library with a ceiling modeled after a Roman art gallery, and a formal dining room with beamed ceiling and terracotta tiled floor.

The property also contains a courtyard with reflecting pond, Charles Gillette-designed gardens, a four-car garage and additional off-street parking.

Cralle, who is based in Farmville, said he was buying a house that may potentially double as a Richmond showroom, acknowledging that most of the company’s customers result from the city.

Often traveling to other countries to source Green Front’s rugs and furniture, Cralle said he was attracted to the Spanish-design house because of its international flair, which he said would complement the online content and serve as a proper backdrop. He said the home also will be utilized to host various design events and client appreciation parties.

He’s dealing with Richmond filmmaker Martin Montgomery on the documentary, and he’s enlisted local designer Avery Frank to assist with designing the interiors, which he said will be freshened up and brought up-to-date. He said the kitchen and bathrooms also will be redone.

Cralle said the procedure would serve showing design options available through Green Front, which he runs with father and co-owner Richard “Dickie” Cralle. The company operates out of a 1 million-square-foot complex in Farmville, with additional spots in Northern Virginia and Raleigh, North Carolina.

The 120-employee company earns about $50 million in gross annual sales, Cralle said.

“It’s likely to help our make of Green Front, the options and customization options we've,” he said. “Maybe even go down to the factory where it’s being made and speak to the people rendering it, to show the whole process of some of this furniture.”

Cralle said he’s not putting a budget on his renovation, which he’s likely to get underway in coming months.

“We’re likely to put our heads together to see what this may become,” he said. “These varieties of houses just don’t pop up every day, so you want to go all in and see what comes of it.”