Retailer At Home Reportedly Considering Bankruptcy

At Home Group is reportedly on its way to bankruptcy. Sources close to the matter claim the home furnishings chain is looking to hand over operations to creditors.

At Home has had a difficult time bringing in enough revenue to keep up with mounting debt payments. Several options are apparently being discussed, with possible bankruptcy among them. The company’s estimated debt is around $2 billion.

Purportedly, President Trump’s tariffs have created uncertainty with At Home’s ability to stay solvent. Many of the retailer’s products are imported. With tariffs as high as 145% on Chinese goods, any plans the company has to turn things around are now more complex and unclear. Even before the tariffs went into effect, At Home was anticipating problems with imported goods from China and moving some operations out of the Asian country.

At Home is owned by equity firm Hellman & Friedman, which bought the company in 2021 for $2.8 billion. The chain has about 250 locations across 40 states. On average, each store carries 45,000 home décor products, varying from wall art to furniture and rugs.

The Rise and Fall of At Home

Formerly known as Garden Ridge, At Home stores started popping up in neighborhoods around 2014. At the time, the location size was 120,000 square feet, or roughly the size of the average Target.

Instead of building new stores from the ground up, At Home worked with landlords needing to fill vacant department stores. It would often fill large spaces once occupied by the likes of Dillard’s or Belk.

Originally based in Schertz, Texas, Eric White founded Garden Ridge Pottery in the late ‘70s. By 1986, a second store was opened in Houston. Just as the business began generating annual sales of $50 million, White sold the company in 1988.

However, the new investors ran the company into bankruptcy by 2004. In October 2011, Garden Ridge’s owner at the time, Three Cities Research, sold the home furnishings retailer to AEA Investors.  

Under CEO Lee Bird, company operations were moved to Plano, Texas. Stores were also revamped, and new checkout systems were installed. Pricing was adjusted to keep pace with big rivals like Walmart and Home Depot.

After Bird retired, new CEO Brad Weston took over last year. Prior to At Home, Weston was head of Party City.

After years of trying to compete, the company has continued to struggle. It appears the retailer is again on the road to bankruptcy. At Home has not commented on any rumored plans to file for Chapter 11 protection thus far.