La-Z-Boy Finalizes Sale Of Pennsylvania House To Universal

Furniture World Magazine

La-Z-Boy Incorporated announced that it completed the sale of the Pennsylvania House trade name and certain related assets to Universal Furniture for $1.65 million. Under the terms of the agreement, Universal Furniture is buying only the Pennsylvania House brand name without acquiring the inventory or shares of the company. Consumers or retailers who have bought today’s Pennsylvania House products shall continue to be serviced by the old company. Pennsylvania House, a 120-year-old company, specializes in furniture for every room in the home and is best known for its stylish solid-wood furniture with high-quality craftsmanship. “Pennsylvania House is a great quality brand with over 100 years of strong customer recognition,” stated Randy Chrisley, chief executive officer of Universal Furniture. “We plan to give it a fresh new look and reintroduce the new Pennsylvania House collections in the Spring of 2008 at the International Home Furnishings Market in High Point. These innovative collections will feature new ideas done in solid wood and will be an extension of our currently successful solid wood program.” Kurt Darrow, President and Chief Executive Officer of La-Z-Boy Incorporated, said, "We are pleased to have finalized the Pennsylvania House deal. While it has an excellent name in the marketplace, it did not fit with our long-term strategy and we believe Universal will be a natural partner for it." During the High Point Market, Universal Furniture met with dealers to answer their questions and get their thoughts on a new Pennsylvania House program. “Our dealers were enthusiastic and very supportive of the new Pennsylvania House product direction and have given us their input on the re-launch of the brand,” Chrisley recalled. “This new brand will be a perfect fit for Universal’s goal to build a stronger solid wood case good business and be the best solids brand in the industry.” La-Z-Boy will record a pre-tax charge of $0.6 million related to the trade name and expects to record an additional pre-tax charge in the range of $3 to $4 million for liquidating the subsidiary's remaining inventory. The total of these charges, net of tax, will be included in the "income (loss) from discontinued operations (net of tax)" line of La-Z-Boy's Statement of Operations. About Universal Furniture International: Universal Furniture International, Inc. is a highly regarded source for beautiful home furnishings at attractive prices. Universal offers design excellence and exceptional manufacturing processes from its dedicated facilities in China. Universal distributes its collections through fine home furnishings retailers throughout North America and in numerous other countries. For more information, please visit www.universalfurniture.com. About Samson Marketing: Samson Marketing is a wholly owned subsidiary of Samson Holding (Lacquercraft Manufacturing) and management company of two U.S. Casegoods marketing companies (Universal Furniture and Legacy Classic Furniture). Background Information: La-Z-Boy Incorporated is one of the world's leading residential furniture producers, distributors and retailers, marketing furniture for every room of the home. The La-Z-Boy Upholstery Group companies are Bauhaus, England, La-Z-Boy and La-Z-Boy, U.K. The La-Z-Boy Casegoods Group companies are American Drew, Hammary, Kincaid and Lea. The La-Z-Boy Retail Group consists of 69 stores operating in eight metropolitan markets. The corporation's proprietary distribution network is dedicated exclusively to selling La-Z-Boy Incorporated products and brands, and includes 333 stand-alone La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries(R) stores and 281 La-Z-Boy In-Store Galleries, in addition to in-store gallery programs at the company's Kincaid, England and Lea operating units. According to industry trade publication In Furniture, the La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries retail network is North America's largest single-brand furniture retailer. Additional information is available at http://www.la-z-boy.com/.