CORT Launches National Office Furniture Purchase-Leaseback Program

CORT announces a national purchase-leaseback program that allows companies to transform office furniture into cash for strategic investments.

CORT, a Berkshire Hathaway company (NYSE: BRK.A and BRK.B) and the nation’s leading furniture rental company for the past four decades, launched the program as many businesses re-evaluate the purchase and ongoing maintenance cost for office furnishings.

“Wise use of capital is a requirement, especially in today’s economy,” said Larry Shapiro, who leads Strategic Client Services for CORT. “Most companies consider office furniture as a cost of doing business and fail to consider the alternative of renting furniture. CORT’s purchase-leaseback program enables companies to transform office furniture into cash for strategic, growth-based business investments.”

According to a study by the International Facilities Management Association (IFMA) companies of all sizes, from Fortune 500 businesses to initial start-ups, are investing far too much time and resources in maintaining, redeploying and storing office furniture. Furthermore, more than half of these companies use off-site storage facilities to help manage their office furniture inventory, and the companies are unlikely to ever use most of the furniture again. When all of these hidden “costs of ownership” are tabulated (facilities, staffing and manpower, logistics and delivery, as well as the on-going depreciation of unused assets) the total dollars expended are significant.

Small to medium-sized businesses with more than 150 employees are the primary candidates for CORT’s purchase-leaseback program. If a company meets qualifications, CORT will buy the used office furniture and lease it back over 36 months or longer.

As an example, Chicago-based Liquidus Marketing took advantage of CORT’s pilot program and found immediate benefits on their balance sheet. “Working with CORT on the purchase-leaseback program enabled us to invest capital where we get our greatest return, which is from writing software code and developing innovative solutions for advertisers,” said Liquidus chief financial officer Ryan Dammeyer.

Joseph P. Flanagan, chief executive officer at Acquirent, an outsourced sales company based in Evanston, Ill., took advantage of CORT’s purchase-leaseback program to hire more sales people. “We are a fast growth company, and instead of tying our resources into purchased furniture, we redeployed that investment into hiring people. Our bread is buttered by our sales force, not by fixed assets and equipment,” said Flanagan.

In addition to providing an immediate influx of capital for strategic investments, outsourcing the management of office furniture gives companies the flexibility to adjust furniture inventory based on business needs, whether that is hiring more employees and establishing new offices quickly, or reducing furniture inventory to conserve resources.

For additional information on the purchase-leaseback program, please visit www.cortstrategicsolutions.com.

About CORT

For more than 35 years, CORT has been a leading provider in rental furniture and has provided services to more than 80 percent of the Fortune 500 companies. CORT has offices in every major U.S. market and a global furniture rental network of affiliates in more than 50 countries. For more information about CORT, visit www.cort.com.