Conn’s Las Cruces location to close as company declares bankruptcy

The Las Cruces location of Conn’s HomePlus, a retailer with several locations in New Mexico and West Texas, will close after the company filed for bankruptcy in late July.

The retailer sells household goods such as mattresses, appliances, electronics and more, extending credit for many purchases.

The Las Cruces location sits in the Mesilla Valley Mall and employs around a dozen people in Las Cruces. Their showroom on the northern side of the Mesilla Valley Mall features living and dining room sets as well as bedroom furniture along with large appliances.

The company will also close its three Albuquerque locations, one in Santa Fe and two El Paso locations.

According to the company’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in the Southern District of Texas, Conn’s operates in 553 locations in 15 states, 22 distribution and service facilities and employs about 3,800 people full-time. Reporting on the company’s contraction indicated Conn’s registered a net loss of nearly $77 million last year.

The court filing indicates Conn’s will close all of its business locations and plans to conduct liquidation sales nationwide concluding Oct. 31 if not sooner.

“We’re sorry to see them go. They were part of our mall family,” Loretta Pina, the mall’s general manager, told the Bulletin. “We should be securing a new tenancy as soon as we possibly can. Right now our mall is at 96 percent occupancy and we want to keep our occupancy rates up.

Pina added that interest in leasing retail space at the mall is strong. “We’re not going to have too many open spaces left for too long.”