Rowe Furniture of Ellison, which gained a new owner in January, has named Stefanie Lucas president and chief executive officer. She had been the company’s senior vice president of sales, marketing and merchandising.

Lucas succeeds Gerald Birnbach at the beleaguered company. After a prolonged financial spin, the Rowe Cos., of which Rowe Furniture had long been a subsidiary, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in September.

In January a federal bankruptcy judge approved the sale of Rowe Furniture to Lexington-Rowe Furniture, a new affiliate of Florida-based Sun Capital Partners, a private investment firm. Read more »

Rowe Furniture of Elliston has a new owner and, possibly, a brighter future.

If the beleaguered manufacturer of upholstered furniture survives and thrives, that could be good news for 825 people who work at Rowe’s factory in Elliston or its frame shop in Salem.

After a prolonged financial spiral, the Rowe Cos., of which Rowe Furniture was a subsidiary, filed in September for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

The Rowe Cos., based in McLean, subsequently closed and liquidated Storehouse, its retail furniture subsidiary.

On Jan. 19, a federal bankruptcy judge approved the sale of Rowe Furniture to Lexington-Rowe Furniture, a new affiliate of Florida-based Sun Capital Partners. The sale price was $30 million, with $24 million in cash and the remainder earmarked for the assumption of certain liabilities. The deal closed Thursday night. Read more »

A changing market and fallout from the housing slump are pushing retailers

That familiar furniture store with an expansive showroom may be going the way of the old corner pharmacy and mom-and-pop grocery — and for some of the same reasons.

On Rockville Pike in Rockville, Mastercraft Interiors and The Storehouse furniture stores are closing due to bankruptcies. In Virginia, Colony House Furniture of Centerville and Stanis Furniture in Fairfax have closed. Hooker Furniture of Martinsville, Va., recently closed manufacturing plants in Virginia and North Carolina. And Routzahn’s furniture store in Frederick is going through its toughest sales period in its 60 years.

National chains, including La-Z-Boy, Ethan Allen, Bassett and Furniture Brands International, reported disappointing third-quarter sales outlooks.

Overall furniture sales for the first nine months of 2006 were actually up 8.6 percent over the same period a year ago, according to a U.S. Commerce Department report, to reach $86.7 billion. Sales in August reached $18.7 billion, up from $17.8 a year ago. However, the September estimated sales for stores selling only furniture is off 0.3 percent compared with September 2005. Read more »

Storehouse Inc.’s parent company has filed for bankruptcy protection — leaving furniture stores in Columbia and about 68 other locations in limbo as the company pursues a sale.

Storehouse furniture store on Devine Street in Columbia is the Atlanta-based company’s only S.C. location. Known for its selection of high-end contemporary and modern furniture, it serves close to 7,000 customers in South Carolina, local management said.

Kim Britt, store manager, said shoppers come from as far away as Greenville, Spartanburg, Hilton Head and Beaufort. Read more »

The Rowe Furniture plant in Elliston shut down a production line and cut loose 37 hourly workers Thursday. Workers at a frame shop in Salem were unaffected.

The manufacturer, a subsidiary of McLean-based The Rowe Cos., also cut 21 jobs at its factory in Poplar Bluff, Mo. Rowe Furniture manufactures upholstered furniture and has employed about 1,580 people companywide.

Saverio Mancina, a spokesman for Rowe Furniture, said the company, like many of its competitors in the furniture industry, experienced a decline in retail sales in February. Read more »