Thu, Mar. 26, 2009
The Wichita Eagle – BY BILL WILSON

Ribbit to open new store on Rock Road

Ribbit Computers is moving its oldest Wichita location to Kellogg and Rock Road.

The 4-year-old computer company has outgrown its first store at Lincoln and Woodlawn and will open a 5,000-square-foot location at 438 S. Rock Road in the second half of May, owner Alex Harb said.

The move is part of Harb’s philosophy: Bring express computer service, sales and installation to demand centers in the greater Wichita area. Harb thinks the Kellogg and Rock store could add as much as $3 million in annual sales to Ribbit’s bottom line.

“We need a store that can handle traffic from Andover, Augusta and Derby, the south and east Wichita suburbs,” Harb said.

“Woodlawn is a little bit too close to our downtown location. We’ll go from 2,000 square feet down there to a 4,000-square-foot showroom at Kellogg and Rock.”

The relocated store will include the staples of Harb’s business model: Dell and Macintosh computers, Verizon Wireless mobile phones and Internet products and a full-service, one-day computer repair department.

He expects to add about seven employees to the 37 that staff Ribbit’s Wichita locations, including the company headquarters at Douglas and Washington, Maple and West Street and K-96 and Rock Road.

Ribbit also includes a business computing service division, IT Group, formed in 2007.