What’s Happening With Conn’s in 2025

Conn's, a name once familiar to many American households for home appliances, electronics, and furniture, particularly known for its in-house financing options, has reached a significant turning point in 2025. What exactly is happening with Conn's this year? The answer marks the end of an era for the 135-year-old retailer.

What’s Happening With Conn’s in 2025: The End of an Era

For consumers and investors who have followed the trajectory of Conn's, Inc., the year 2025 brings a definitive conclusion to its retail operations. After navigating challenging economic headwinds and strategic missteps, Conn's filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in July 2024, leading to a confirmed wind-down and liquidation process in July 2025. This means all of Conn's stores have now closed.

So, how did a company with such a long history arrive at this point, and what does this mean for those impacted? Let's delve into the details of Conn's journey and its final chapter.

Understanding Conn's: A Legacy in Retail and Financing

Founded in 1890, Conn's, Inc. established itself as a specialty retailer offering a wide array of durable consumer goods, including home appliances, furniture, mattresses, consumer electronics, and home office products. A key differentiator and a cornerstone of its business model was its in-house financing, which aimed to provide credit options to a broad spectrum of customers, including those with challenging credit histories. This approach allowed many consumers to acquire big-ticket items through flexible payment solutions.

The Road to Bankruptcy: Unpacking Conn's Fiscal Challenges

Despite its long-standing presence, Conn's faced increasing pressure in recent years, culminating in its Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing on July 23, 2024. Several factors contributed to this challenging situation:

• Impact of the Badcock Acquisition: In December 2023, Conn's acquired W.S. Badcock, a move intended to expand its reach and accelerate growth. However, this acquisition ultimately contributed significantly to Conn's financial burdens, adding to its debt and increasing overhead.
• Rising Interest Rates and Debt Burden: The company heavily relied on issuing debt to support its operations and strategic initiatives. However, increasing interest rates led to a substantial rise in interest expenses, making it difficult for Conn's to manage its debt obligations.
• Consumer Spending Shifts: Conn's experienced three fiscal years of losses as consumers, particularly its core customer base on more modest incomes, cut back on discretionary spending due to rising costs of necessities. This directly impacted retail sales and profitability.
• Credit Portfolio Deterioration: Given its unique in-house financing model, Conn's was particularly vulnerable to economic downturns affecting its credit-reliant customers. Pressure on business growth and potential increases in loan loss provisions further strained its financial health.

The Wind-Down in 2025: Store Closures and Liquidation

By July 2025, the bankruptcy proceedings had advanced to the point where a Texas court confirmed Conn's third amended plan to initiate the company's final wind-down and liquidation. This confirmation effectively marked the end of Conn's 135-year business history, with all of its 553 stores now closed.

The wind-down process has involved monetizing remaining assets and interests, with proceeds directed towards creditors. For unsecured claims totaling over $375 million, creditors are unfortunately expected to receive only about a penny on the dollar. A significant part of Conn's assets, including its servicing division, was acquired by Jefferson Capital.

What This Means for Consumers and the Retail Landscape

The closure of Conn's has direct implications for various stakeholders:

• For Former Customers: If you were a Conn's customer with an active financing plan, your account would likely have been transferred to the entities that acquired Conn's assets, such as Jefferson Capital. For questions regarding warranties or service agreements, it would be crucial to check any communications received during the bankruptcy process or contact the new servicing entity directly.
• For Former Employees: The wind-down resulted in significant job losses, impacting the approximately 3,800 people Conn's employed across 15 states at the time of its bankruptcy filing.
• For the Retail Market: Conn's departure leaves a void in the home goods and appliance market, particularly for retailers offering flexible financing options. This situation creates new real estate opportunities for other businesses and allows neighboring retailers to potentially capture a portion of Conn's former customer base.

Looking Back and Lessons Learned

The story of Conn's in 2025 serves as a stark reminder of the volatile nature of the retail sector, especially for businesses heavily reliant on consumer credit and susceptible to macroeconomic shifts. While Conn's had a unique model that served a particular market segment, the confluence of high debt, rising interest rates, and changing consumer spending habits ultimately proved too great a challenge. The company's attempts to expand, such as the Badcock acquisition, while strategic in intent, ultimately added to its financial strain in a difficult environment.

The retail landscape continues to evolve, emphasizing the importance of adaptability, diversified revenue streams, and robust financial health to withstand economic pressures.

Frequently Asked Questions About What’s Happening With Conn’s in 2025

Q1: Is Conn's HomePlus still in business in 2025? No, Conn's HomePlus is no longer in business. The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in July 2024, and its final wind-down and liquidation were confirmed in July 2025, leading to the closure of all its stores.

Q2: What happened to Conn's stores? All of Conn's 553 retail locations, including those under the Badcock Home Furniture & More banner, have been closed as part of the company's bankruptcy liquidation process.

Q3: What should I do if I had a financing plan with Conn's? If you had a financing plan with Conn's, your account would likely have been transferred to a debt collection company or another entity that acquired Conn's assets, such as Jefferson Capital. It is advisable to review any recent communications from Conn's or the bankruptcy court for details on who is now servicing your account.

Q4: Why did Conn's go out of business? Conn's faced significant financial challenges, including increasing debt and interest expenses, declining consumer spending on discretionary items, and the financial strain from its acquisition of W.S. Badcock. These factors, combined with its reliance on in-house financing for credit-challenged customers, made it difficult to sustain operations in a challenging economic environment.