Bush Industries, a Jamestown-based furniture manufacturer, has endured the highs and lows of a company that has lasted for nearly 60 years.
The company thrived in the late 1990s, reorganized through bankruptcy in 2004, and recently returned to local ownership through a management buyout. Now comes the latest chapter in its history: Lorraine Capital, a Buffalo private equity firm, has bought the business. Terms were not disclosed.
For the executives who bought back the company in 2014, this was the natural next step, said Jim Garde, who was one of those executives and is retiring as CEO.
"We bought the company with the idea we wanted to get it on a sustainable, steady base, and then find a partner that we could sell it to who would recognize that and help us grow it," he said.
Bush has nearly 400 employees worldwide, about 300 of whom are in Jamestown. It has manufacturing operations in Jamestown, warehouse operations in Erie, Pa., and Reno, Nev., and an office in China.
Lorraine declined to disclose Bush's annual sales figures. But Garde said the company "has done very well" over the past few years. Through May, he said, its sales were up nearly 30 percent from the same period a year ago.
Bush's leaders met Lorraine Capital through the manufacturer's bank, PNC, Garde said.
"We had some other opportunities to sell, but we were really attracted [to Lorraine] because of their focus on Western New York and how much they appreciate keeping a base here," he said.
Bush's leaders also liked that Lorraine didn't invest on a strict schedule, Garde said. "They're really in it for a medium or longer-term view."
William Maggio, Lorraine's managing director, said the quality of Bush's leadership team was part of what appealed to Lorraine. "These are very, very skilled individuals from very diverse backgrounds who have done a remarkable job turning this business around and positioning it to be one of the innovators."
As customers have become more comfortable making large purchases online, Bush's leaders "have been able to really kind of introduce the furniture into this space like no one else has been able to do," Maggio said.
Paul S. Bush founded the company in 1959. In the mid- to late 1990s, the company was riding high, enjoying steady growth in sales and profits. Forbes named Bush one of the "200 Best Small Companies in America" for 1996-97. Strong sales of personal computers fueled demand for its office furniture.
But Bush's fortunes changed in the early 2000s, amid a downturn in the economy, a slump in the technology and telecommunications markets, and cheaper imports from China. In 2004, Bush reorganized through bankruptcy, and its founder stepped down as chairman and CEO.
Bush converted from a publicly traded to a privately held company. A pair of investment firms owned the business, prior to a 2014 management buyout that restored local ownership.