How I Built This with Guy Raz Room & Board: John Gabbert. A Broken Deal, a Family Rift, and the Birth of a Furniture Giant
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May 11, 2026 
John Gabbert, founder of Room & Board and former leader at his family’s furniture business, built a modern American-made brand without outside investors. He talks about his IKEA revelation, a decade-long family rift after a failed buyout, trading shares to go independent, choosing slow, principled growth, and eventually transferring ownership to employees.
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How A Trip To Ikea Sparked A New Retail Model
- John Gabbert discovered Ikea in Sweden in 1972 and realized a retailer could design product, control manufacturing, and sell directly.
- That trip was a revelation that planted the seed for vertically integrated retail and Room & Board's model.
A Broken Buyout That Split The Family
- A signed buyout agreement with his father fell apart on the closing date in 1980, triggering a decade-long family estrangement.
- John traded his ~30% Gabbert's shares for ownership of the small Room & Board division and left the family business.
Customers Mature Into Higher Quality Demand
- John repositioned Room & Board from temporary, IKEA-like pieces to higher-quality American-made furniture as customers aged into permanent homes.
- A bigger Edina store revealed customers who bought affordable pieces when young then upgraded to solid wood and steel designs.
