Daily News
From Home Furnishing Business
Chapter 11 Protection Filed by Another Struggling Furniture Retailer
November 27,
2023 by HFBusiness Staff in Business Strategy, Industry 
According to an article in The Rochester Business Journal, third-generation home furnishings retailer Ruby-Gordon Home filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Nov. 20 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court Western District of New York.
Aaron Ruby, owner and CEO of the two-store, Rochester-based retailer, told Furniture Today that the filing is an effort to get back on track. He said pressures created during the pandemic, plus Klaussner’s sudden closure earlier this year proved to be too much.
“We’ve been struggling to recover since 2020. Unfortunately, in the last eight months, too much went sideways in too short an amount of time. Klaussner going out the way they did was the straw that broke our back,” Ruby said. “We’re hoping that Chapter 11 gives us a chance at having a future, we’re just not certain exactly what that will look like.”
In the filing, Ruby-Gordon listed an estimated $1,000,001 to $10 million in total assets with $1,000,001 to $10 million in total liabilities to an estimated 100 to 199 creditors.
Ruby-Gordon was founded in in 1936 by Frank Ruby. Six years later, he partnered with Ted Gordon. Ray Ruby, Frank’s son served as second generation owner and spearheaded the move to Henrietta in the 1960s.
Today, it is owned by Ray’s son Aaron and his wife, Janetta Ruby, who represent the third generation of family ownership.
In addition to its Henrietta flagship Ruby-Gordon has a second Rochester showroom in Greece Ridge.
This marks another fixture in the furniture market undergoing big changes to file for protection, close it’s doors or be at high risk of closing. In an article in TheStreet, another retailer is labeled as being at risk.
“Wayfair, "with its once-promising pandemic-era business surge, now finds itself in treacherous waters," said Rapid Ratings Executive Chairman James Gellert in an email to TheStreet. "In an era of abundant and inexpensive capital, Wayfair was able to stay afloat because they had time on their side. However, the clock is ticking. Higher interest rates and a risk-on market environment are causing a capital retraction."
The online furniture retailer scored a 19 on Rapid Ratings' Financial Health Rating scale. That's a pretty bleak number which puts the company in the bottom half of Rapid Ratings' high-risk group "with an estimated probability of default of 11.41% over the next 12 months," according to the report.
Wayfair lost $401 million in its most-recent six months, down from $697 million in the same period the year before. The company currently has roughly $3.4 billion in assets and $6 billion in liabilities”