I really wanted to buy a Coja leather sofa and when I was advised Coja Leather was bankrupt I went to great lengths to see if I could find a store that might have a floor model of what I was looking for. Anyways, I called local stores in my area (Vernon Hills, IL) and also called some stores in NC. In speaking to various stores, their sales people, etc I learned that Coja Leather closed the company and owed a lot of people a lot of money (which apparently they will not pay) and then the same Coja Leather owners opened Sofa4life and called all of these stores and told them that they are still operating Coja now under a new name called Sofa4life. I was a little skeptical of what I was being told but when Sofa4life themselves wrote the above post and confirmed that it was true I had not doubt about what these stores were telling me: "Sofa4life Inc. is continuing to produce all Coja models. They are the same owners, same employees and same quality products. To see the product lineup please visit www.coja.com . As well they can be reached at 416-642-9398. The address is 1290 Creditstone Road, unit 2 in Concord, Ontario L4K 5T7." Anyways, I really don't need any headaches or drama for a new couch so I started looking at American Leather. Anyone have something from them and are you happy with it?

Do I smell a religious discussion lurking in the wings? I had my post scratched, here, when I commented on the "God helps those who help themselves" quotation above. Plus admin sent me a warning to behave myself. I understood that religion and politics were not permitted on the Kitchen Table, but haven't seen in the Terms of Service that it was unacceptable elsewhere. As many of you know, I have spoken often here in opposition to the 15 - 18% rates of interest on major credit cards and the 25 - 28% charged by store-issued cards. When we sign (or, by our action agree to) contracts, it's important that we understand the terms. But many people don't bother ... many just ask how much they must pay as minimum monthly payment. Which means that, if they follow that procedure, they'll still owe part of that debt in 10 years or so. Along with a number of others, I've said for years, and done some lobbying along the line of trying to get implemented, that children should be taught more about the management of daily living, including money management, in school - but in most places it's very little done. As a parent, it seems to me important that I teach my children how money works, and how to take care that they not get into trouble in its use. I've done quite a lot of talking here relateed to the need for people to learn increasingly how to manage both their income and assets effectively. Taking on some of these credit card contracts grows to be more or less like flushing a $50. bill down the toilet ... ... every week. Stupid ... and hardly any of them would take on such a contract, if the terms were fully explained to them. I am distressed by the OP's reference to being able to keep not only cars ... but "houses", as well. I lived for a number of years where people, many of them refugees who'd left their home with nothing, had to save for years to afford a bicycle. Plus devise methods of countering rather high rates of inflation which chewed value annually from each of their units of currency while they did so. That's a treadmill, for sure. I am troubled by the lackadaisical attitude that some (many?) of our contemporaries seem to take regarding discharging obligations which they have undertaken: no one forced them into it. If my kid runs down an icy hill with leather shoes ... s/he shouldn't be surprised if s/he falls on her/his patoot. When we get to be adults ... we should act responsibly. When we make a contract, we should make a serious effort to fulfill our obligations in it. ole joyful

You remember the reasons given for it being essential to let the market decide which is the best way to go? That competition will ensure that everyone offers the products and services that people desire ... they claim. And it's partly true ... the corporations love competition ... among their suppliers. That way, the big guys can dictate to each supplier what they're willing to pay: take it or leave it. If they're big enough, many suppliers will take it ... until they are near bankrupt. They love competition among their customers: if there are only a few, they have too much negotiating power ... there is more or less a level playing field. But ... they hate it on their own level. Remember how we had a lot of little (granted, inefficient) dairies? The locally dominant dairy'd come in and offer the little guy about half what his business was worth. If he refused, they'd undercut his prices till he could no longer survive. Then the big guys came along and ate the middle-sized ones. When you have half a dozen players doing 80% of the business, do you figure that there's much competition? We have a small number of gasoline suppliers in Canada. When there's a price rise ... four local stores all put up their price to the same amount ... at the same time. After many complaints were heard, the government carried out several evaluations, over the years. They all came up with the conclusion that, yes, there is competition in the petroleum business. And all is well. As communism fell in Russia, many very large businesses and agencies were sold off to certain well-placed individuals or small groups. So they start off with heavy centralization, from the start. The same is going on in China as they gear up for participation in the market eceonomy - many very large companies are being set afloat. A number of them with close association to the Chinese government ... or the army. So theirs is to be a mature, over-centralized, economy from the start. We talk a lot about "freedom" and "democracy" ... which we mean to be operational in the political, and substantially in the social, realm. But a measure of "economic democracy" that some of us feel to be a worthwhile way to fly, doesn't get much consideration. Corporations run by the golden rule: he wot has the gold ... makes the rules. Good wishes for wise management of your life and assets. ole joyful

I have most likely lost close to $10,000 on a furniture order I placed on custom upholstered furniture and casegoods to furnish an entire room with Pierre Deux items. I put my deposit for the items on my AmEx card. When I received the Bankruptcy notice in the mail, it didn't mention the name, "Pierre Deux." It mentioned a name I didn't recognize in Secaucus, NJ. When intuition told me it could be Pierre Deux, I quickly notified AmEx, who credited my account, but only until they "investigate" what's going on. One of the terms in an incident such as this is that the transaction must have taken place no longer than 60 days prior to the Bankruptcy. In Chapter 7, no customers are reimbursed. Only creditors who made the goods sold by the comnpany declaring Chapter 7 Bankruptcy receive payment, and it will be a fraction of what they're owed. In fact, the legal notice I received regarding the Chapter 7 Bankruptcy stated that I should NOT file a claim. I don't know what will ultimately happen with the money I paid to Pierre Deux through AmEx, but suspect that I will lose it all. Every Pierre Deux store is closed. I don't know how it cannot be considered fraudulent to continue to take orders online, unless the Pierre Deux online "store" is a separate legal entity from the bricks-and-mortar stores. It's infuriating. I was expecting delivery of an entire room of furniture, casegoods and accessories and instead, I received their bankruptcy notice stating that they had debts totaling over $150,000,000 and assets of $10,000,000. Didn't their Chief Financial Officer see the dispararity, or was this a case of putting blinders on and bailing out quickly.? Everything in the stores and in stock will be liquidated to pay the companies who produced the products sold by Pierre Deux.I'm an interior designer and did a great deal of business with Pierre Deux. I went to another, larger furniture provider to purchase replacements for the Pierre Deux furniture I have probably paid for but will never see. Lesson: Be VERY careful before putting a deposit on anything you order. Many businesses are failing.It's truly unfortunate for the employees, unfortunate for the suppliers, and quite a shock for loyal customers.