More than 40,000 Racine residents toured the new store when it opened in 1939. Porters was one of the first stores in the country to have furniture arranged in room-like settings. The Porters House of Ideas (now called the Guild Galleries) created by interior designer Marie Crowley, brought the company nationwide attention and collected many trade and civic honors. Marie and Ted later married and together ran the store until Ted¹s untimely death in 1960. H. Robert Waters joined in partnership with Marie Crowley Gottlieb after Ted¹s death. Still in his twenties, Waters followed the same energetic philosophy that had shaped Porters¹ destiny. In 1969, Porters extended further to the corner of Seventh and Wisconsin as more vintage buildings were rehabilitated. It was around this time that the Porter Furniture Co. officially became Porters of Racine, in part to stress the value the store placed upon its location.