Chandler’s Liquidation Sale Postponed

The long-promised liquidation sale at Chandler’s furnitures stores in Santa Ana and Laguna Hills did not take place as planned Friday.

With thermometers hitting the 90s, a small crowd of customers waited patiently--some for hours--in front of the stores.

Some, like Patty Coleman of Irvine, were just hunting for bargains. “They have some beautiful things. I thought maybe I could pick something up,” Coleman said.

Others, like Kaye Kaufman of Irvine, turned up in hopes that they might get some preference over the general public because they have already paid for merchandise that has not been delivered. By mid-morning, though, “nobody even came to the front door,” said Kaufman, who ordered $1,700 in merchandise last year.

Chandler’s, one of Orange County’s oldest companies, closed in early March under pressure from creditors.

The furniture store’s major creditor is Norwest Business Credit Inc., a Minneapolis, Minn., lending institution that contends that it is owed about $2.9 million. Because Norwest has a secured lien on the furniture stores’ inventory, it had the right to take possession of Chandler’s inventory if the retailer defaulted.

When Chandler’s stopped making payments on its loan to Norwest, that is exactly what happened. Norwest’s had scheduled the inventory clearance for Friday.

Creditor Awaiting Program

It did not take place as scheduled, said Norwest’s senior loan administrator, Greg Wilson, because the creditor was waiting for Chandler’s to set up a program to resolve the cases of about 300 Chandler’s customers who paid for merchandise that they have yet to receive.

“We don’t have any authority--or responsibility--to fill those backlogged orders,” Wilson said. “We believe it would have been impossible to hold a (liquidation) sale without (having) someplace to send” customers who have been waiting for merchandise.

That someplace, it now appears, will be the law office of John Barclay, the Newport Beach lawyer who represents Chandler’s.

Barclay said his office has been authorized to set up a trust account. Customers who paid deposits for furniture that was not delivered can put the amount of their unpaid balances into the fund.

“If they send us the money and a copy of their original (order) invoices, we’ll order the goods,” Barclay said.

Chandler’s will not refund deposits, Barclay said.

Now that Chandler’s has agreed to set up the trust account and fill orders through the law firm, Wilson said, Norwest plans to start the liquidation sale at both furniture stores next Saturday or Sunday. The exact day and time will be announced later, he said.

Barclay said customers who have already paid deposits should receive letters from his law firm within 2 weeks.

According to Barclay, Chandler’s intends to continue operating after Norwest liquidates the inventory that is now in the stores.