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Art Van is out of money and is liquidating and closing all stores

Discussion pertaining to Detroit, Ann Arbor, Port Huron, and SW Ontario
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MWmetalhead
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Art Van is out of money and is liquidating and closing all stores

Post by MWmetalhead » Thu Mar 05, 2020 12:06 pm

I'm not surprised by this outcome.

I think many ad execs are shitting their pants.

Their radio ads were scaled back recently, but they've long been a very heavy TV advertiser.

I bet a lot of area stations will miss budget this year.



bmw
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Re: Art Van is out of money and is liquidating and closing all stores

Post by bmw » Thu Mar 05, 2020 12:08 pm

They've been giving my parents the run-around for MONTHS on warranty work on their newly purchased sofa, going back to November. I now have to wonder if they've been doing this to EVERYBODY, stiffing them out of warranties.



fuzzpower
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Re: Art Van is out of money and is liquidating and closing all stores

Post by fuzzpower » Thu Mar 05, 2020 3:40 pm

Art Van has been junk since the 80s.

Looks like stations will have to rely even more on political advertising, but that’s scaled back for now with Bloomberg gone.



km1125
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Re: Art Van is out of money and is liquidating and closing all stores

Post by km1125 » Thu Mar 05, 2020 5:47 pm

Are we sure this isn't another gimmick sale for a weekend?? ;)



Deleted User 15062

Re: Art Van is out of money and is liquidating and closing all stores

Post by Deleted User 15062 » Thu Mar 05, 2020 6:04 pm

Had a discussion about a week back on this. Guess it's actually public now. I compared them to Banner Mattress in Toiletto. Grew too big too fast, too high of prices.



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Re: Art Van is out of money and is liquidating and closing all stores

Post by Deleted User 15062 » Thu Mar 05, 2020 6:07 pm

fuzzpower wrote:
Thu Mar 05, 2020 3:40 pm
Art Van has been junk since the 80s.

Looks like stations will have to rely even more on political advertising, but that’s scaled back for now with Bloomberg gone.
I thought Bloomberg's money has already bought and contracted spots, which is why we would keep hearing his spots. That was something we spoke of yesterday.



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Rate This
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Re: Art Van is out of money and is liquidating and closing all stores

Post by Rate This » Thu Mar 05, 2020 7:18 pm

I heard an ad (not sure if it was Art Van or Gardner-White) a month ago say “WHAT DO WE HAVE TO DO TO GET RID OF OUR OVERSTOCK” in a booming echoing voice... well... liquidate yourselves for starters...



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MWmetalhead
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Re: Art Van is out of money and is liquidating and closing all stores

Post by MWmetalhead » Thu Mar 05, 2020 8:18 pm

A lot of the furniture in my house came from Art Van.

They are the middle-of-the road furniture store in terms of price point. Better quality merchandise than Gardner-White. Much more affordable than Gorman's. Not ghetto like La-Z-Boy. I am unfamiliar with Bob's Discount Furniture, other than their campy TV spots.

Bricks and mortar furniture shopping options have suddenly become much more limited around these parts. I like to examine the quality of what I'm purchasing when we're talking furniture-level price points. (By the way, IKEA does not appeal to me in the least.)

Art Van has made a number of strategic blunders in recent years. The one that really sticks out for me is their moronic decision to open a bunch of "Pure Sleep" stores. What, exactly, was the point? The long since abandoned "Paul's TV" was another blunder (very weak selection, no home audio, had to walk through the bowels of the store to get to what was hardly more than a kiosk).

The second is their complete failure to evolve the shopping experience. Instead of salesmen dressed in fancy suits descending on you like hawks the moment you step into the store, how about having your employees dress business casual instead? Design consultation? Missing in action! What about accent furniture, lamps, wall decor, etc.? Slim pickings, and the stuff that generally is available for sale is in the overpriced Clearance Center...err..."Outlet."

How about digital marketing and web presence? Every time I do a Google shopping search for furniture, Art Van NEVER appears in the results...EVER! In a world of Wayfair, Overstock.com, and Joss & Main, that is simply unacceptable.

Did anyone ever "LINE UP AT 9AM!!!!" to get freebies that were supposedly handed out to early bird shoppers? Those commercials were so outrageously tacky. I love how the retail chain whose employees wear expensive suits and neckties feature a prolifically pukey booth announcer who sounds like he worked at 103.5 The Blaze or 100.3 Pirate Radio in L.A. circa 1990.

The writing was on the wall long before Thomas H. Lee Partners took over. They thought for some reason making a shit sandwich with Art Van and a couple crappy chains out east would spell success. It was basically business-as-usual after Lee Partners acquired the chain. They should be faulted for not adapting the chain to 21st century shopping habits. I suspect any attempts to change culture & mindset were thwarted or simply were not attempted.



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Re: Art Van is out of money and is liquidating and closing all stores

Post by TC Talks » Thu Mar 05, 2020 10:52 pm

They have been owned by a Private Equity company for a while who bleed them dry. They probably would have been ok if they didn't sell out and expand so quickly.


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MWmetalhead
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Re: Art Van is out of money and is liquidating and closing all stores

Post by MWmetalhead » Fri Mar 06, 2020 6:14 am

They would've had more time to attempt a turnaround for sure.

I doubt the Van Elslander family would've sold in the first place if things were trending in the right direction.

I think the end result would've been the same, but maybe Art Van could've survived another five years.



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Re: Art Van is out of money and is liquidating and closing all stores

Post by uncleb67 » Fri Mar 06, 2020 6:21 am

A couple years ago, I started renting a condo. The outgoing tenant was moving down to FL and was leaving MI behind. He offered me a mint-and-still-in-use-to-this-day bedroom suite (no thanks on the mattress, buddy, but I’ll gladly keep the headboard and bed frame) and a (since-replaced) sectional couch. It all came from Costco and is/was great stuff, and my offer was $700 cash, which he gladly accepted on his way outta town. From there on, I’ve bought all my furniture from Costco, finding it to be good quality, priced right, and backed by their generous return policy. Sorry, Art Van.



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MWmetalhead
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Re: Art Van is out of money and is liquidating and closing all stores

Post by MWmetalhead » Fri Mar 06, 2020 7:01 am

Great example. Undoubtedly, Costco has had a disruptive effect on Art Van.

Costco, I think, is also probably a top 3 contributor to the demise of Sears.



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Re: Art Van is out of money and is liquidating and closing all stores

Post by mikemach » Fri Mar 06, 2020 8:12 am

All our recent furniture purchases (and electronics) - Costco. I find they also have excellent customer service after the sale.



km1125
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Re: Art Van is out of money and is liquidating and closing all stores

Post by km1125 » Fri Mar 06, 2020 8:58 am

Think Bob's also had a significant effect? They seem to be everywhere now and I hear a lot of folks talking about recent purchases there. I've never been into one of those and haven't been to an Art Van in years, so I have no idea how they compare.

Also, did I hear correctly that Art Van sold all their real estate to a REIT and was leasing the stores back? That never seems to end well.



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MWmetalhead
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Re: Art Van is out of money and is liquidating and closing all stores

Post by MWmetalhead » Fri Mar 06, 2020 9:57 am

Correct on the last point. That means Art Van was desperate for cash, either to support operations or to remain in good standing with its lenders.

Bob's only has 3 Metro Detroit stores so far. Their entrance into the market didn't help matters, but I doubt they command much market share yet.

The fact Gardner White appears on the verge of outlasting Art Van stuns me. (Wanna talk crappy quality...)



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