About Us

David E. Urner 1918

Everyone loves a good home-town story. And Urner's is the quintessential story of a local family that made good.

We can trace our early roots to... the back of a bicycle?! Yep, a bicycle. That's because Urner's was the dream-child of David E. Urner, a local high school teacher, who spent his summer months selling Wear Ever cookware off the back of a bicycle (think 100+ degrees).

David teamed up with another local teacher, Errol P. Janes to create “a new type of store – one that would cater exclusively to providing an easier way of living for the women of Kern County”, and on September 19, 1919, Home Appliance Store was opened to the public. The store boasted a rather-impressive selection of “modern” appliances, including a washing machine, a freezer, a gas range, an automatic dishwasher, and an assortment of small appliances.

Soon after, the business was changed to Urner & Janes, and the pair of young entrepreneurs were off and running to hard-earned success.

The subsequent decades have brought numerous changes. Janes left to return to teaching and the business was renamed, Urner's, as we know it today. But even after a great depression, a second world war, and a pretty darned serious earthquake in 1952, Urner's remains one of Kern County's oldest and most-respected businesses... now in a spacious, modern showroom in a convenient Southwest Bakersfield location.

The century may be different, but Urner's remains as true as ever to their primary focus... providing great products, sold by great people, to great customers. It's not unusual to find the children, grandchildren, and even great grandchildren of earlier generations learning some new cooking tips, enjoying the thrill of a great sale, or just building lasting relationships with some of the very best sales consultants in the business.

Z's Please Super Store, 2012

Early 2012 saw the addition of our new mattress super store, Z's Please Sleep Center, in Northwest Bakersfield, where you'll find the Urner's tradition alive and well, with arguably the nicest mattress showroom in the state of California. The Mattressologists (a.k.a. sleep experts) at this location offer Central California's largest selection of mattresses and sleep systems in an inviting, tranquil setting that has more than its share of customers asking if they can just spend the night there.

For nearly one century, the Urner family and Urner's business have both been an integral part of Bakersfield and Kern County, with contributions to community (Better Business Bureau, Sister City Projects, Bakersfield Symphony), charity (Ronald McDonald House, St. Jude's Dream Home, House of Hope) and education (CSU Bakersfield, Ray Dezember Leadership Development Center).

Explore the website, visit the store, or join us socially. We're all about home, all about fun, and all about you... and we're ready to make you a part of the Urner's family today.