Judge approves GuildMaster Ch. 11 reorganization plan

A U.S. bankruptcy judge for the Western District of Missouri today approved a Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization plan filed last year by Springfield-based home furnishings manufacturer GuildMaster Inc.

According to a GuildMaster news release, the plan includes a purchase agreement by management and a small group of unnamed investors who have committed more than $1 million in capital. It also effectively regulates the company as private. The company had operated as a public company trading Pink Sheets over-the-counter under the symbol GLDU. The move to OTC stock coincided with a recapitalization, which allowed GuildMaster to shed more than $3 million in debt and all of GuildMaster’s outstanding preferred stock in exchange for equity.

"The company has been trading on the OTC bulletin board since 2009. Until recent events, it had no plans to become a privately held company," GuildMaster CEO Steve Crowder said in a statement.

In its petition filed Dec. 13, 2012, GuildMaster reported estimated assets of $1 million to $10 million, against estimated liabilities of $1 million to $10 million. The filing reported an estimated 50 to 99 creditors.

The company, which operated as Decorize Inc. until November 2009, filed modifications to its reorganization plan on Sept. 13 and Sept. 18, reflecting settlements with Guaranty Bank and the OEC Group, creditors holding secured claims, according to the reorganization approval filing.

Also helping to finance the company during the years was Quest Capital Alliance, a venture capital firm born with the help of funds from Jack Stack-led Springfield Remanufacturing Corp. Quest Capital provided $2.75 million in debt and equity funding to Decorize between 2004 and 2006, according to Springfield Business Journal archives.

GuildMaster was sentenced in federal court on Aug. 30 to five years of probation for importing thousands of lamps with counterfeit safety certification labels from its manufacturer in China. In accordance with its plea agreement, GuildMaster agreed to forfeit to the government 5,585 lamps - valued at roughly $1.8 million - seized during raids by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.