Avon Levin Furniture among stores reopening

AVON — The Levin Furniture store on Nagel Road is among 17 locations the company says have reopened. All Levin stores were previously closed due to bankruptcy litigation and effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The stores, in the greater Cleveland and Pittsburgh markets, reopened Friday and will operate with hours of 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sundays, according to a press release. In 2017, the Levin Furniture company was acquired by Art Van Furniture, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy March 8. The Chapter 11 cases were converted to Chapter 7 liquidation cases in April, meaning a trustee was to collect Art Van Furniture and its related companies' assets, sell them and pay creditors' claims, according to a posting that was previously on the furniture company's website. The new Levin Furniture company is owned and operated by executives Robert Levin, Chairman, and Matt and John Schultz, co-CEO's. Levin said he came out of retirement to bring new life to his family's home furniture chain, seeking to secure leases to reopen as many of the original stores as possible. "Our customers and associates can once again have access to the quality and commitment of a family-owned business that offers a great place to furnish homes and to work," Levin said in a statement. "We are excited to bring back a century of high standards and caring for the communities we serve." The stores that are opening were acquired through the bankruptcy process, according to the press release, and 375 former associates have already been hired with more open positions expected to be filled. Customers who have made deposits before Levin previously closed but have not received refunds will be receiving a letter and resolution form in the mail detailing the next steps, the company says. Located just off the Interstate 90 and Nagel Road interchange in one of the most desirable areas for retailers in the city, the Avon store was built specifically for the furniture seller in 2016. In December 2017, the 4.5-acre property sold to Phoenix-based Vereit Real Estate for $17.7 million, according to The Chronicle-Telegram archives, in what Lorain County Auditor Craig Snodgrass described at the time as a "sale-lease-back agreement." The full list of Northeast Ohio Levin stores opening, as of Friday, is: Furniture stores: Oakwood Village — 23100 Broadway Ave, Oakwood Village OH 44146, (440) 374-2400 Mentor — 7799 Mentor Ave, Mentor OH 44060, (440) 255-1320 Middleburg — 16960 Sprague Rd, Middleburg OH 44130, (440) 891-1392 Canton — 6229 Pomler Ave NW, North Canton OH 44720, (330) 498-4000 Avon — 1801 Nagel Rd, Avon OH 44011, (440) 695-3063 Mattress stores: Mayfield — 6061 Mayfield Rd, Mayfield Heights OH 44124, (440) 947-0047 Stow — 1061 Graham Rd, Stow OH 44224, (330) 928-4077 Strongsville — 16105 Pearl Rd, Strongsville OH 44136, (440) 876-0044 Contact Dylan Reynolds at (440) 329-7123 or dreynolds@chroniclet.com. Follow him on Twitter @drey1357.