Carpet Barn closure prompts property sale

As the Carpet Barn wraps up operations after 43 years, the company’s owner is seeking to sell the north-side Springfield property.

Keith Smith, president of ownership company HMS Enterprises Inc., said bids are currently being accepted directly through its Girard, Kansas, office. The company has not hired a real estate agent to list the 13,000-square-foot building on 4.4 acres at 4725 N. State Highway 13. Smith declined to disclose the asking price.

The 1973-built Carpet Barn building and property has a 2017 taxable appraised value of $312,300, according to Greene County assessor records.

Known for the donkey character that extrudes from the front of its red barn-like building, Carpet Barn’s sales have dwindled in recent years among increased competition. HMS Enterprises purchased the business in 2003 and briefly changed the name to Derailed Flooring Outlet before switching it back to Carpet Barn. HMS operates a chain of 17 flooring and furniture stores, including those under the Derailed Commodity moniker.

“We just haven’t had very good years in the last three or four,” Smith said, estimating annual revenues have fallen to $600,000 from over $1 million during that time. “There’s been a proliferation of flooring stores in Springfield.”

Currently staffed by two employees, the Carpet Barn is holding a liquidation sale through May 15. Smith said at one time, the business employed as many as five. The business sells carpeting from various brands, including Tarkett and Mannington, and hires independent contractors for installation, according to its website.