Bankrupt furniture brand abruptly closing 2 stores after 30 years – owner ‘got a call from company ‘to close’

A PROMINENTE furniture brand has confirmed plans to close at least two stores after 30 years in business.

Local customers should get their housewares needs elsewhere, and clearance sales have already begun.

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The brand, Badock Home Furniture & More, is predominantly based in the Southeast region of the United States.

Sonja Reinhardt owns the two Badock Home Furniture & More stores that are closing in Florida — one in Panama City and the other in Lynn Haven, per ABC affiliate WMBB.

She told the outlet that the outages occurred suddenly via a phone call from Badock Home Furniture & More’s furniture and electronics parent company, Conn’s HomePlus.

Conn’s Home Plus purchased WS Badock, which operates its stores under the name Badock Home Furniture & More, in 2023.

The merger created an expansion opportunity for both companies, bringing the combined number of stores to more than 500 locations.

Still, Texas-based Conn’s HomePlus filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Tuesday, with plans to close nearly half of its 170 stores after 134 years.

At the at least 35 Of these stores are Badock Home Furniture & More locations, including Reinhardt’s two Florida-area stores and another not under its purview in St. Petersburg.

LAST DAYS

“We got a call from companies saying they had declared bankruptcy and were closing all of our stores,” Reinhardt recalled.

The owner of Badock & More said the news was a “punch in the gut” for the family business and put it in a difficult financial situation.

“I worked with my mom and, you know, my mom had a store and it’s, you know, it’s a family thing and it’s been a family business for a long, long time,” Reinhardt noted.

“It’s a big financial problem. I am worried and angry today.”

Badock & More locations in the Florida region were destroyed when Hurricane Michael hit in 2018, then rebuilt and later survived the coronavirus pandemic in 2020.

Reinhardt said the company handled the hardships and promised to continue serving the community during the 90-day liquidation sale that began Thursday at both locations.

“I made friends with clients and I want these clients to know that I will be here for the next 90 days to take care of them”, he highlighted to WMBB.

FURNITURE FALL

Conn’s HomePlus confirmed the closure of at least 73 company-owned stores in its website.

Florida has the highest number of closures, with 20 locations cited.

In the bankruptcy filing issued Tuesday, Conn’s HomePlus noted a decline in sales in recent years as well as a drop in Americans’ discretionary spending amid inflation and cost-of-living data, per CNN.

The company’s shares also fell an astonishing 90% in 2024 and a deletion notice of the Nasdaq earlier this summer.

Conn’s HomePlus still plans to “have ongoing discussions with potential buyers to sell all or part of the business and preserve jobs in the future,” according to a spokesperson.

The US Sun previously contacted Conn’s HomePlus for more information but did not hear back.

Other furniture brands have also been hit this year.

A beloved chain with 400 stores closed a store after 24 years in July, with “final phase” sales up 70%.

In February, another family-based furniture chain closed six stores in one city.