End of an Era: Art Van Furniture to Close and Liquidate

A legend in the furniture business is shutting.

Art Van Furniture Inc. will close all of its roughly 300 stores after struggling with heavy debt and a disrupted furniture and mattress retail landscape under private-equity ownership, Dustin Walsh of Crain's Detroit Business reports.

Liquidation sales start Friday at all company-owned stores.

Crain's reported last month that the retailer's private-equity owner, Thomas H. Lee Partners, was exploring options that could include a sale and bankruptcy. It acquired the Warren-based retailer in 2017 for an estimated $550 million.