Clint Engel — Furniture Today,
CHICAGO — A subsidiary of Ashley is acquiring the four Ashley Furniture HomeStores here after the owner ran


out of the cash needed to run them, the manufacturer said.

Rockledge Furniture, a subsidiary of Ashley, has agreed to purchase “substantially all the assets of Slovy Enterprises” and entered into new lease arrangements for all stores, the company said. The purchase price was not disclosed.

The Slovy assets had been turned over to an “assignee” to act for the benefit of creditors, Ashley said in a statement.

Ashley said Rockledge is developing a plan to add more HomeStores in Chicagoland, but didn’t release details.

“We are very excited about the opportunities in Chicago,” said Ashley Chairman Ron Wanek.

The Slovy family, led by brothers Rick and Larry Slovy and their father, Barry Slovy, operated former Top 100 company Bay Furniture of Homewood Ill., as well as the Ashley stores here. Last year, the retailer turned over its Bay assets to an assignee/trustee, who eventually brought in Great American Group to liquidate the chain.

Shortly after the Bay stores were turned over, Larry Slovy said Bay “just got in a little over our heads,” and said economic conditions had made it “tough doing business.”

The Ashley stores were a separate operation and were not involved in the Bay Furniture situation, but apparently Slovy Enterprises ran into similar problems with the HomeStores business.

“Slovy Enterprises, while confident in its ability to develop the Chicago market for Ashley Furniture HomeStores, found that its cost projections for fixed assets were incorrect,” Ashley said. “In developing alternative plans while attempting to service the entire market, they simply ran out of money.”