15 idled by closure of Ashley Furniture

Ashley Furniture Homestore in North Charleston has closed its doors, saying it expects to come under new ownership.

The 50,000-square-foot outlet shut down on Dec. 31, affecting about 15 workers. The store, a major anchor at The Shoppes at Centre Pointe shopping center, is at 4950 Centre Pointe Drive across from the Tanger Outlet Center.

A sign at the front entrance informed customers who have outstanding orders that their purchases still would arrive.

"Unfortunately, to enable new ownership to undergo a complete showroom renovation to better serve you, we will not be open for business during this transition period," the sign reads.

No reopening date was provided.

Inside, the store was mostly empty Friday without much sign of any renovation work. A few clusters of furniture were scattered throughout the showroom,

among piles of bare mattresses. Blankets and plastic packaging were strewn across some displays.

The store was operated by a franchisee, Compass Furniture Group, which could not be reached Friday.

Ashley Furniture Industries Inc., a privately held company based in Arcadia, Wis., has more than 220 independently owned and operated stores across the country. A representative from the headquarters also could not be reached.

Compass showed signs of financial distress in November when Ellerey Homestyles, a furniture supplier to big-box retailers like Target and Wal-Mart, filed a form of a lien known as a "predistress warrant" against the company, according to Charleston County court records.

The store opened about two years ago.

Ashley Furniture's Web site shows that the chain has nine South Carolina locations.

Reach Katy Stech at 937-5549.