Saturday, May 29, 1999
INDUSTRY NOTES: RETAIL
Dreamland files for bankruptcy
BY LISA BIANK FASIG
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Dreamland Bedroom Galleries Inc. this week filed a wake-up call: bankruptcy protection.
The West Chester bedtime supplier turned to Chapter 11 Tuesday in Cincinnati. It listed assets of $675,000 and debt of $1.44 million.
Dreamland operates five stores in Greater Cincinnati and three in Dayton. Stores are in Eastgate, Western Hills, Colerain, Fairfield and Florence.
Dreamland referred questions to its attorney, who did not return calls on Friday.
Filing Chapter 11 does not mean a company is going out of business. The filing is to protect the organization from its creditors while it undergoes a reorganization plan. Ideally, bankrupt companies emerge and are able to continue to do business.
But shoppers should still limit their risks when shopping at bankrupt retailers, attorneys caution. It's a good idea to leave the store with the merchandise, rather than await a delivery.
In bankruptcy, the secured creditor — usually a bank — is first in line to collect outstanding debts.
Whatever is left is divided among nonsecured creditors, such as vendors, usually at pennies on the dollar. If the parties are repaid in a way that satisfies the bankruptcy court and creditors, the company can emerge and operate as before.
Arhaus to open another local store
Some Cincinnati-based furniture chains have had trouble surviving in the Queen City market, but that isn't stopping out-of-towners from dropping a welcome mat here.
The latest: Arhaus Furniture, the Cleveland-based specialty chain, will open its second area store June 18. The store is in Springdale at the former Leugers store across from Tri-County Mall.
Arhaus, which features its own line of eclectic, upscale furniture and home accessories, opened its first store in Blue Ash in 1993.
Gary Babcock, Arhaus vice president of merchandising, said two stores can better serve the market because shoppers in Springdale don't regularly come to Blue Ash to shop.
“The customer base there just seems to appreciate the quality and style of our furniture,” Mr. Babcock said, regarding the area market. “We do extremely well in the existing store that we have in Blue Ash.”
Other furniture chains have had less luck here. In the past few years, J. Schloemer Furniture and Leugers Furniture Co. have folded. In 1998, the Crestview Hills Signatures Home Store closed because of a softness in the industry.
Arhaus operates 15 stores and was founded in 1977.
Staples signs lease in Hamilton
Staples has signed a lease to open a store in February in Hamilton.
It will be the 10th Staples store in Greater Cincinnati. Construction will begin soon at the site on the northwest corner of Hamilton-Richmond Road and Washington Boulevard.
The store is expected to employ about 40 people.
Weathervane Retail plans expansion
Weathervane Retail Corp., a Connecticut retail chain with one area store, in Tri-County Mall, has announced a plan to shift its focus to the lucrative female youth market as it emerges from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
A spokeswoman for Weathervane said the retailer received $5.5 million in capital from GB Equity Partners to help bankroll its growth plan. Weathervane had focused on the age 25-to-45 women's market before filing for bankruptcy in February 1998.
As part of its emergence plan, Weathervane plans to renovate 30 of its 51 stores — including the one in Tri-County — and open 30 additional stores in the next three years. The expansion plans involve opening 3,000-square-foot locations in top-tier malls.
DeSha's reopens after renovations
DeSha's Restaurant in Montgomery has reopened after an extensive renovation. The new place is called deSha's American Tavern.
The eatery, at Harper's Point on Montgomery Road, underwent a $500,000 refurbishing, making it a “modern evolution of the traditional tavern.”
Sports bar bets on 'bowlingo'
Shoppers will get expanded Kroger in '00
Block redeveloped in OTR
Spending rises while savings fall
Market warms up with summer heat
TRISTATE BUSINESS SUMMARY
INDUSTRY NOTES: RETAIL
PEOPLE ON THE MOVE
TRISTATE MARKET SPOTLIGHT
