The home improvement retailer, formerly known as Lumber Liquidators, is closing nearly 100 stores while 300 will remain open. The Richmond, Virginia-based company has filed for bankruptcy.

The specialty retailer of hard-surface flooring has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and will pursue a going-concern sale of its business. LL Flooring (formerly known as Lumber Liquidators) said it remains in active negotiations with multiple bidders and hopes to seek bankruptcy court approval of a sale of its business in the first few weeks of the Chapter 11 proceedings.

In addition, the retailer has entered into an agreement with Hilco Merchant Resources to assist it in store closing sales at 94 locations nationwide. LL Flooring noted it has more than 300 stores open with few changes to store operations and policies.

“After comprehensive efforts to enhance our liquidity position in a challenging macro environment, a determination was made that initiating this Chapter 11 process is the best path forward for the company,” said Charles Tyson, president and CEO of LL Flooring, which is based in Richmond, Va. “Today’s step is intended to provide LL Flooring with additional time and financial flexibility as we reduce our physical footprint and close certain stores while pursuing a going-concern sale of the rest of our business.”

In court documents, LL Flooring listed estimated assets in the range of $500 million to $1 billion and liabilities in the range of $100 million to $500 million.

The company has received a commitment for debtor-in-possession financing of up to $130 million from its existing bank group led by Bank of America. Following court approval, the incremental liquidity provided by the DIP financing, combined with cash generated from the retailer’s ongoing operations is expected to support the business during these proceedings.

LL Flooring said it intends to pay vendors and suppliers in full under normal terms for goods and services provided on or after the Chapter 11 filing date and has requested court approval to do so.


Source: chainstoreage.com