— Home Accents Today,
April Cornell announced that three of its retail stores are re-opening this month, in New York, Philadelphia and Burlington,


Vt. The stores were closed earlier this year following parent Cornell Trading Inc.’s January filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

The stores selected for re-opening were the first three to open when the company began retailing in 1981. “We chose these three locations because they are our longest running stores and already have a large client base,” said founder April Cornell. They’re also within manageable distances from our own hometown, so we’ll be able to nurture them closely, creating truly individual and unique destinations.”

The Cornells’ son and daughter-in-law, Cameron Cornell and Camille Daunno, will take on the operations and design of the retail locations, which are transitioning from a mass-merchandising business model to a boutique retail format. “Our stores began as boutique shops, so this transition is essentially a return to our beginnings and a reflection of who we are,” said April Cornell.

When Cornell Trading sought bankruptcy protection in January, it was operating 75 retail stores in the United States and said it hoped to emerge from bankruptcy within four to six months. The company was founded by Chris and April Cornell in 1975 in Montreal.