Silverdale store in former Levitz location.

Independence Day will mark a different milestone for Ashley Furniture HomeStore personnel this year.

The furniture company will open its first store in the Seattle/Puget Sound area right here in Silverdale Friday, July 4.

“The partners have been looking at this market for quite a while and an opportunity finally arose, giving us the advantage to capitalize on it,” Ashley Furniture HomeStore Spokeswoman Cassie Williams said.

The 52,000-square-foot store is located in the former Levitz Furniture location next to Sportsman’s Warehouse on Ridgetop Boulevard.

Williams said the company looked at Silverdale for a while and decided it would be the perfect fit for a furniture store.

“Silverdale is an underserved market for the furniture industry and Ashley provides a shopping experience unlike any other which makes Silverdale a perfect location to begin our first Washington store experience,” Williams said.

She added that the large population of military families constantly moving in and out of the area also was a draw to Silverdale.

“New homes mean new furniture for people and Ashley provides a quality product at an affordable price to meet all their needs,” she said.

Ashley Furniture HomeStore sells its own brand of furniture at 380 nationwide locations.

“Our brand is Ashley. We are revolutionizing the industry in the way that furniture is bought, sold and delivered. We design it, build it and deliver it directly to our customer base,” Williams said.

Williams said Ashley Furniture HomeStore sells a variety of pieces for every room in a person’s home.

“We offer a wide variety of styles, comfort, luxury and most of all affordable furniture for every room in your home,” Williams said. “From stylish and contemporary accessories, to bedrooms, to living rooms, dining areas and more, Ashley offers all that you want for your home furnishing needs.”

The Silverdale furniture store employs 40 people, but Williams said Ashley Furniture is always looking to hire staff members.

“Ashley is always looking for energetic and charismatic people. We welcome people who want to be a part of a fun and competitive environment who would enjoy interacting with the Silverdale community on a daily basis,” Williams said.

Ashley Furniture plans to open six stores in the Seattle/Puget Sound area.

“We are very interested in the Seattle market and hope to be pursuing ventures there by next year,” Williams said.

Ashley Furniture HomeStore will be open 9 a.m.—9 p.m. Monday-Saturday and noon — 6 p.m. Sunday.