PORT ALLEN — A furniture store in Port Allen has been turning heads for more than half a century and these days it's doing it with a bottle of hot sauce.

Brian's Furniture launched its own Louisiana hot sauce in 2016 as a marketing tool. Customers receive a bottle with every furniture purchase and each bottle features the store's bright blue logo.

The hot sauce caught the attention of a well-known celebrity chef, who gave it a public shout out. According to the store, that moment changed everything for the product.

Brian Forroux started the business 45 years ago in a vacant building in historic downtown Port Allen, right across the street from his father's gas station. The spot where a giant blue chair now sits is nearly the same place where his dad's gas pumps once stood.

Black and white photos from the 1950s tell the story of that city block on Court Street, where a young Forroux was already thinking about going into business for himself.

"20 years old at LSU knew I would eventually go into business for myself so doodling with antiques buying and selling antiques and said hey furniture is kinda fun," Forroux said.

After more than four decades, Forroux stepped down and handed the business to his son Blake and daughter Lindsey.

"Lindsey's got a great eye for fabric and home furnishings and Blake the mailbox guy has taken the mailbox to a new level and of course the outdoor furniture," Forroux said.

Blake reflected on what carrying on the family name means to him.

"With dad starting the business 45 years ago and we're still here as a second generation as a business owner it means a lot," he said.

The family's roots in Port Allen run deep. "We've been part of Port Allen for more than 75 years in terms of businesses," he said.

"You go to school here, grew up here raise your children here it means everything that's what we love about our community," he said.

Customers seem to feel the same way. "I would like a sofa, an ottoman and a bottle of hot sauce you can't beat the hot sauce here in Louisiana," one customer said.