Roomful Express, a furniture retailer with 13 stores in Western Pennsylvania and eastern Ohio, is going out of business this month after failing to repay lenders $18.8 million it owes.
Allegheny County Judge Christine Ward on Tuesday appointed Compass Advisory Partners, a Downtown-based management consulting firm, as the receiver that will oversee a "going out of business" sale beginning the middle of this month, Roomful Express said in a statement.
Compass Advisory intends to give customers who have placed deposits on merchandise the goods they have purchased, Roomful Express said.
The retailer has about 350 employees, many of whom could retain their jobs through the closing-out sale that could last a few months, the company said.
Michael Kuhn, president of R.H. Kuhn Co. of Crafton, the parent company of Roomful Express, could not be reached for comment.
Nicholas W. Arrington, a managing partner for Compass, also could not be reached for comment.
Yesterday's announcement that the furniture chain is going out of business was made four days after Roomful Express said it was negotiating with senior lenders holding the $18 million in debt.
The lenders, including PNC Financial Services Group Inc., the Downtown-based parent of PNC Bank, previously had received a judgment against Roomful Express, spokesman Bob Butter said.
PNC spokesman Fred Solomon declined to comment on the matter because it involves a client. Solomon declined to say how much of the $18 million Roomful Express owes to PNC.
Roomful Express blamed its business failure on "poor market conditions and the inability to repay its financial obligations." Roomful Express, like other furniture outlets, suffered double-digit declines in revenue this year compared to 2009, according to Greg Theobald, a company spokesman. Lower housing starts and a poor credit card environment hit sales.
Roomful Express evolved from the former Freight Liquidators furniture chain that opened in 1973. The name was changed to Roomful Express in 2000 to reflect the household furnishings the company sold in its stores.
Roomful Express had grown to where it was ranked 63rd on Furniture Today's Top 100 furniture stores for 2009. Trade publication Furniture Today estimated Roomful Express generated $81.7 million in revenue last year, primarily from selling $78.9 million worth of furniture, bedding and accessories.
Customers with questions can contact Roomful Express customer service department at 412-444-2300, ext. 280, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. After Thursday, inquiries can be made toll-free at 1-888-696-7378.
