La-Z-Boy closing Canadian factory
By Furniture Today Staff -- Furniture Today, October 10, 2005
Monroe, Mich. — La-Z-Boy said it will close its only Canadian upholstery factory later this year and shift production to plants in Missouri and Tennessee.
The closing of the Waterloo, Ontario, plant, which makes recliners and motion sofas, will result in 413 lost jobs.
"The plant has been operating at less than optimal capacity for some time and represents a small portion of La-Z-Boy's total production," said Kurt Darrow, president and CEO. "This action ... will result in increased efficiencies in our remaining manufacturing facilities, enabling us to be more productive in less square footage."
Darrow said the company remains "firmly committed" to the Canadian market, and noted that about half of the La-Z-Boy products sold in Canada already are produced in U.S. factories.
The 400,000-square-foot Waterloo plant ships products primarily to Canada's eastern provinces. Darrow said production will be shifted to plants in Neosho, Mo., and Dayton, Tenn.
"We regret the impact this will have on those employees working at the Waterloo facility, but this action is necessary for La-Z-Boy to remain competitive and improve our remaining operations," said Darrow.
The company will take a pretax charge of $9 million to $10 million, or 11 cents to 12 cents per share, for costs associated with the closing.
