LL Flooring, formerly known as Lumber Liquidators, is closing all of its stores after ceasing operations after three decades.
The retailer, orOne of the largest flooring suppliers in the United States was looking for a buyer after filing for bankruptcy.
At the beginning of the summer, it had 442 stores, but it closed almost 100 in an effort to cut costs and attract investors. No buyers could be found.
In a letter to customers yesterday, bosses said: “It is with great regret that we must inform you that we are beginning the process of winding down the business and closing all of our stores.”
LL Flooring will now sell off its remaining stock in its remaining stores, which will begin tomorrow and last for about 12 weeks. About 2,000 people will lose their jobs.
LL Flooring, with 442 stores in 47 states, filed for bankruptcy on Aug. 11. It is now closing and holding a liquidation sale.
All existing orders will be fulfilled within 30 days, including those awaiting installation. But installation will no longer be offered for those who purchase flats in the clearance sale.
The retailer, which specializes in hardwood flooring, has faced declining sales over the past year as families cut back on home renovations.
It’s not the only home goods and furniture chain that’s been affected. Appliance retailer Conn’s HomePlus is closing all of its more than 170 stores.
Meanwhile, Badcock Home Furniture & More announced in July that it will close all 380 of its stores. The 120-year-old retailer was based in the southern United States.
LL Flooring filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on August 11 and immediately closed 94 stores. to reduce costs and make the company attractive to a buyer.
Chapter 11 allows companies to continue doing business while they figure out how to cut costs and renegotiate with companies they owe money to.
Following news last month that LL Flooring was in financial trouble, customers took to Reddit.
“People are mortgaged to the max on properties that need renovation. They can’t afford to make improvements at the moment,” wrote one.
Tom Sullivan founded Lumber Liquidators in 1994 by purchasing excess lumber from companies and reselling it at a discount.
At first, the company operated out of the back of a pickup truck in Stoughton, Massachusetts.
Soon after, Sullivan began dealing directly with factories as he sought to cut out wholesalers who acted as middlemen and to lower prices to outperform rivals.
Celebrating two decades in business in 2014, Sullivan said at the time: ‘Looking back and seeing how far we’ve come in 20 years is almost like a dream.
‘We went from being a small operation to serving more than two million people and, in the process, we changed the way we sell hardwood floors.
‘Our customers know that the value and quality of their floors are unmatched.’
Sullivan left the company in 2017 and has since had issues with the board. He has tried to take over the company but has so far been rebuffed.
Lumber Liquidators was renamed LL Flooring in 2020.
The troubles for LL Flooring come amid a widespread “retail apocalypse” that sees stores struggling with ever-tightening margins at a time when Americans are cutting back on spending.
There were almost 2,600 store closures in the first four months of 2024If this trend continues, almost 8,000 people will have been lost by the end of the year.
Last week it became known that Big Lots, which has already closed a quarter of its 1,400 stores, is on the verge of bankruptcy. The news sent its shares tumbling 50 percent.
In recent months, Walmart has closed three more underperforming stores. Best Buy closed ten. in March.
Badcock is another home goods retailer that was struggling with money. It had more than 380 stores in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Virginia, all of which will close at an unspecified date.
LL Flooring is the largest flooring company in the US.
Dollar stores have also been hit hard: 99 Cents Only announced in April that it would close all 371 of its stores in California, Texas, Arizona and Nevada.
The 1,000 closures of Family Dollar and its sister company Dollar Tree will occur in the next three years.
Express, a mall staple, filed for bankruptcy in April and said it would close 95 Express locations along with all of its UpWest stores.
In early May, Rue21, the teen fashion chain that is a fixture in malls across the United States, also said it will close all 543 of its U.S. stores after going bankrupt.
