IT’S ALL ON THE WALL. Bed, Bath & Drapery owner Larry Kleist has helped clients find the perfect window treatments for over two decades.

For Larry Kleist, the goal has always been to offer something you can’t find anywhere else in Eau Claire. Sure, you can find blinds, curtains, and other such items around town, but at Bed, Bath & Drapery, Kleist endeavors to carry high-quality products no one else is selling. From hard-to-find lamps and shades (made in the USA), to quality linen and comforters, to their selection of unique décor, customers can expect a unique experience.

That said, what people love most about Bed, Bath & Drapery is their custom shade and widow treatment services. The shop’s designers and consultants spend most of their time working with clients, planning out window treatments for their homes, designing each piece to order, and installing the final, custom-built treatments. This is a service you can’t replicate online. And since window treatments last a very long time, it’s important to get them right.

“Years ago, there were standard window sizes,” Kleist says. “Today there’s no such thing as a standard window. Every treatment has to be made to a different size. If you want it to look right and fit right, it has to be custom made.”

The shop is an official Hunter Douglas Gallery, exclusively dealing in products from one of the nation’s highest quality treatment suppliers. Price points are available for all budgets, and each item is well-made, functional, and beautiful.

Before owning Bed, Bath & Drapery, Kleist worked for Wisconsin’s own Prange Way for 24 years, starting in Eau Claire (where he went to school), and moving around the state before settling back in town to manage our very own location of the department store chain. However, more than two decades ago, he left the large retailer to buy a small window treatment shop on Hastings Way, and he made it his own. Later, he moved Bed, Bath & Drapery to its current location on East Hamilton Avenue, doubling its space and expanding the displays.

Those displays are important. They allow people to fully experience the shop’s selection of shades and blinds, choosing the styles, fabrics, and pull systems that will quietly become such an important part of their home.

Many first-time homeowners overlook their windows, ignoring this part of the house until the dust of building or remodeling has settled. But the windows of a house – the only source of natural light – are often left as an afterthought. That’s unfortunate, Kleist says, as windows are “absolutely the personality of the home. If you don’t have window treatments, you leave a hard, cold look.”

Some of their most popular products are energy-efficient honeycomb-style shades, which are great for Wisconsin’s extreme temperature shifts. They lock in heat in the wintertime, while locking it out in the summertime.

Kleist has seen many industry trends come and go over the years. Most recently, the shop added a new line of shades that can be controlled via tablets and smartphones. These treatments can also be programmed to react to different levels of sunlight, opening and closing as they actively adapt to your preferred amount of light. Kleist is quick to point out, “A lot has changed in the 23 years we’ve been doing this.”

Kleist says he loves his job because he loves people. Spend any amount of time in the store, and this is easy to see. He’s quick to compliment a customer’s unique Packers jacket and chat about an upcoming game. “You get to form relationships with people,” he says. “It’s kind of fun to form that relationship where they’re so happy with their window treatments they come back and specifically ask for you.”

Kleist is proud of his business and devoted to Eau Claire. He might be too humble to mention it, but Bed, Bath & Drapery has been able to support local organizations such as Feed My People and the Bolton Refuge House over the years.

“We try to give back to the community,” he says. “I love Eau Claire.”