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High Point-Based Furniture Company’s Bankruptcy Fuels Concerns, Questions

Thomasville Furniture is one of several local companies that will be sold by Heritage Home Group. HHG recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)

A major furniture company based in High Point has filed for bankruptcy.

Heritage Home Group LLC filed for Chapter 11 over the weekend. It's the parent company to the iconic Thomasville and Broyhill furniture brands. According to the company's website, it's negotiating with a potential buyer for both of them.

The company says it's also selling its luxury furniture division. That includes local brands like Hickory Chair, Maitland-Smith and Pearson brands, along with related operations in Hickory, North Carolina and elsewhere.

“It's been a struggle for them ever since they took over from Furniture Brands in 2013, a company that also filed bankruptcy, so it's a disappointment,” says Tom Conley with the High Point Market Authority.

How all of this will impact the local community isn't clear right now. Conley says there are a lot of open-ended questions.

“Our first thought is, 'what about the employees?' And because they are in High Point there are a fair number of employees that we are concerned about. It's a developing situation and one that we are going to watch carefully.”

Heritage Home Group says it has obtained financing to support the company‘s operations during the restructuring and sale process.

“There is not anticipated to be any material change in HHG's operations through the commencement of the sale process,” says HHG in a news release on its website. “Employees will be paid as usual, customers should see no interruption and suppliers will be paid for goods and services provided after the filing date.”

Heritage Homes Group says it expects to provide more information about the Thomasville and Broyhill Furniture brands in the coming days.

*Follow WFDD's Keri Brown on Twitter @kerib_news

Keri Brown is a multi-award winning reporter and host at 88.5 WFDD. She has been honored with two regional Edward R. Murrow awards for her stories about coal ash, and was named the 2015 radio reporter of the year by the Radio Television Digital News Association of the Carolinas (RTDNAC).Although she covers a variety of topics, her beats are environmental and education reporting.Keri comes to the Triad from West Virginia Public Broadcasting, where she served as the Chief Bureau Reporter for the Northern Panhandle. She produced stories for the state's Public Television and Radio programs and was honored by the West Virginia Associated Press Broadcasters Association for her feature and enterprise reporting.She also served as an adjunct instructor at Wheeling Jesuit University and Bethany College in West Virginia. She worked with the Center for Educational Technologies in Wheeling, WV, and other NASA centers across the country to develop several stories about the use of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) concepts in the classroom.Keri's journalism career began at WTRF-TV 7 in Wheeling. She worked in several roles at the station, including the head assignment editor. She also was a field producer and assignment manager at WPGH-TV Fox 53 in Pittsburgh.Keri is a graduate of Ohio University. When she's not in the studio or working on a story, she enjoys watching college football with her family, cooking, and traveling.Keri is always looking for another great story idea, so please share them with her. You can follow her on Twitter @kerib_news.

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