Casa Bique approved to auction assets
Thomas Russell, Furniture/Today -- Home Accents Today, 1/1/2005
A bankruptcy court has permitted the auction of assets that were part of an ongoing Casa Bique bankruptcy proceeding.
But it's unlikely unsecured creditors will see any money from the sale. Proceeds are expected to be applied toward secured debt, including $1.23 million owed to SouthTrust Bank as of Sept. 16, the day the Thomasville-based furniture importer and manufacturer filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
As of October 2003, the inventory was valued at $297,000, although Casa Bique President R. Allen Douglas had testified that the goods could be sold for about $750,000 over a four- to six-month period.
SouthTrust organized the auction. The amount raised by the sale is expected to be disclosed in court records.
Unsecured creditors' claims total around $805,000.
Separately, two companies — Hung Sing Brass and Metal Wares Factory, a Chinese manufacturer, and PBC Investments — claim they own furniture that has been separated from the portion of the inventory SouthTrust sold at auction. Those claims could be settled out of court, but any settlement would need the court's approval.
Excluding the inventory, Casa Bique listed assets of only $1,750.
Douglas was not available for comment. He previously attributed the company's demise to declining sales after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Casa Bique ceased operations in early 2004. Douglas is now president and CEO of a new company he established this year, called Classics by Casa Bique.
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