LL Flooring closing 94 stores, including 2 on Long Island, after bankruptcy filing
The LL Flooring store in Medford, seen here on Tuesday, is one of two Long Island locations slated to close. Credit: Newsday/Thomas A. Ferrara
A specialty flooring company will close more than 90 stores, including two on Long Island, after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
The two Long Island stores — in Medford and Westbury — are among four stores in New York State and 94 nationwide that LL Flooring, formerly known as Lumber Liquidators, will close.
LL Flooring did not answer a Newsday inquiry about the number of Long Island employees that would be affected by the store closings.
The Richmond, Virginia-based retailer has about 430 stores in 46 states.
Stores to be closed in New York State
LL Flooring will close 94 stores, including the following four in New York State:
- Medford, at 700 E. Patchogue Yaphank Rd., Suite 47
- New Hartford, in Oneida County, at 8619 Clinton St.
- Staten Island, at 2040 Forest Ave.
- Westbury, at 4 Kinkel St.
The Medford store opened in May 2021, said Kristen Moore, spokesperson for Brixmor Property Group, the Manhattan-based owner of the shopping center.
Located in Sunshine Plaza at 700 Patchogue Yaphank Rd., the store occupies a 10,121-square-foot space.
LL Flooring’s Westbury store, located 24 Kinkel St., opened around 2009, when the chain was still called Lumber Liquidators. The store's size could not be immediately determined.
Closing dates for the 94 stores being shuttered have not been announced, but sales are being offered "over the next approximately two months."
The closing stores are located in 30 states, including Alabama, California, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Wisconsin.
LL Flooring said its remaining 300-plus stores nationwide would be "generally operating in the normal course" during bankruptcy proceedings, and the company was in active negotiations to sell them to multiple bidders.
Of those remaining open, 17 are in New York State, including three Long Island locations in Freeport, Hauppauge and Riverhead.
"As we move through this process, we are committed to continuing to serve our valued customers, and to working seamlessly with our vendors and partners," LL Flooring CEO and President Charles Tyson said in a statement Sunday, the day the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. "I am appreciative of our associates for their ongoing hard work in providing the best experience for our customers."
LL Flooring, which was rebranded from Lumber Liquidators in 2020, said its financial challenges in recent years included inflation, rising costs of labor, and a shift in how customers were spending.
According to court documents, the company has estimated assets of $500 million to $1 billion, while it has estimated liabilities of $100 million to $500 million.
"After comprehensive efforts to enhance our liquidity position in a challenging macro environment, a determination was made that initiating this Chapter 11 process is the best path forward for the Company," Tyson said in the statement. "Today’s step is intended to provide LL Flooring with additional time and financial flexibility as we reduce our physical footprint and close certain stores while pursuing a going-concern sale of the rest of our business."
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