According to company officials, Hooker Furishings leaves his East Facility business.
The company informed the Liberty County Development Authority about his intention to leave the park this morning. The decision affects 27 employees and the corporate projects that leave their place by the end of June.
Hooker opened his 800,000 square meter facility in December 2021 and at that time was the largest facility in the company's history.
“This decision was not made lightly, and we appreciate the support we received from Liberty County,” wrote Scott Prillaman in the letter to the LCDA.
Several factors led to the decision, including the purchase of Meridian International in 2016. Accentric Home Branch was a flourishing e-commerce division that led to Hooker set up a sales center in Liberty County, Prillaman wrote.
However, the acquisition of Home Meridian had not expected the fight against success expected success, and a significant part of the losses came from Accentric Home Branch. A strong increase in freight rates after the covidal from Asia-von $ 4,000 to $ 25,000 containers influenced the competitive position of Accentric Home in some cases, added Prillaman.
The ACH-business model became high risk and low rank, Prillaman, and the company released the brand and had a $ 24 million depreciation of the inventory in the middle in 2023.
In addition, “historically low apartment sales and wider economic headwinds, including increasing tariffs, have brought with them in the past two years,” said Prillaman. “In view of these factors, we have found that the legal size of our business and the release of the facility in Liberty County is necessary to obtain jobs and to ensure the long -term stability of our business.”
It is expected that Safavieh takes the room from Hooker and continue furniture distribution processes. The Hooker veneer also has a bonus and severance payments of more than 255,000 US dollars for his workforce from Liberty County.
“One of the most difficult aspects of this decision is the impact on our committed employees in Liberty County,” wrote Prillaman. “We are immensely proud of the team we built, and our priority is to support you during this transition.”
Hooker works with the incoming tenant and other potential employers to help his employees find new positions, “ideally in the same facility,” added Prillaman.