The real estate portfolio of Lane Furniture, one of the largest U.S. upholstered furniture makers and distributors, is up for sale as part of a Chapter 11 bankruptcy liquidation of the business.
B. Riley Real Estate has commenced the sale process on behalf of Lane's parent, Tupelo, Mississippi-based United Furniture Industries, acting as its real estate adviser. The portfolio that's on the block includes 14 Lane warehouses and manufacturing facilities, representing over 5 million square feet and 700 acres of real estate across Mississippi and North Carolina, B. Riley said in a statement on Wednesday.
Offers for the full portfolio, a subset and individual properties will be considered, according to B. Riley. The sale will conclude at an auction, slated for late June, that B. Riley will conduct. Stalking horse bids will be accepted through May 12.
United, which manufactured furniture under its name and that of Lane, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January. The company made headlines in November when it abruptly shut down and let its nearly 3,000 employees go.
That prompted Wells Fargo and two other creditors a month later to file court documents to make United/Lane file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. But earlier this year the court said that the company could seek Chapter 11 protection instead, which has led to the liquidation.
The sale "offers opportunities for local redevelopment and provides the necessary infrastructure to support a broad range of new manufacturing and distribution uses," according to B. Riley.
Lane, founded in 1912, has properties in Mississippi in Amory, Belden, Nettleton, Okolona, Tupelo and Vardaman. Its locations in North Carolina are in High Point, Lexington, Trinity and Winston-Salem. The warehouses range from 45,100 to 711,650 square feet. The factories span 45,095 to 434,000 square feet.