Mattress industry supplier Leggett & Platt, with headquarters in Carthage, Missouri, has sold the majority of its Store Fixtures unit to Lozier Corp. for approximately $62 million. The business unit manufactures custom-designed, complete store-fixture packages for major retailers, including metal and wood shelving, counters and showcases. Operations sold are located in Indiana, Missouri and Texas. Lozier, based in Omaha, Nebraska, is a major player in the category.
In July, L&P announced it was exploring the sale of Store Fixtures and classified it as a discontinued operation in the third quarter. All criteria for discontinued operations have been met, the company said. It expects the divestiture to result in a $.04 per share fourth-quarter loss. The company is pursuing the sale of its two remaining store fixtures facilities.
“We are very pleased to have completed the sale of the majority of our Store Fixtures operations in an expedient manner,” said David Haffner, L&P board chair and chief executive officer. “A major component of our strategy, since 2007, has been the optimization of our portfolio of businesses. We remain committed to improving or exiting businesses that consistently underperform our margin and return on capital expectations, and to identifying carefully screened growth opportunities that are very likely to meet or exceed our minimum financial requirements.”
