Ethan Allen To Close 12 Design Centers

DANBURY, CT-Ethan Allen Interiors is closing 12 of its 305 retail design centers to better consolidate business operations, management says. Not all 12 locations were immediately announced, but the company will close two New York City stores in Manhattan and one in Queens in conjunction with the opening of a flagship store on Third Avenue in May.

Ethan Allen owns five of the stores and leases the others. Management expects to sell the owned properties within the next 12 to 15 months and result in pretax gains of $4 million to $5 million.

The 12 stores that are closing represent about $34 million in annual sales, about 50% of which management says will be made up for by the Manhattan flagship store. Existing store locations are expected to make up for most of the other half.