ASHEBORO, N.C. (WGHP) — Nearly 1,000 people are without a job after Klaussner Home Furnishings abruptly closed its doors at the end of the workday Monday.
Employees are trying to figure out what comes next, and their community is standing strong with them.
When walking around Asheboro, it is not hard to find someone who worked at Klaussner or has friends and family who did.
“That is shocking,” said Rudolph Brown when he heard the news of the closure. “I was surprised. I worked at Klaussner for a while, and I helped raise my family at Klaussner.”
“It is just a big disappointment for all of us,” said Jerry Southard, the manager at Hops BBQ in downtown Asheboro. He has worked there for decades and says he has catered for Klaussner over the years.
He isn’t too worried about losing business over this but is worried about all the families impacted.
“We just pray for them that God will take care of them and open some other doors for them,” Southard said.
Those families are facing tough times. Randolph County Economic Development officials say the community is still in good shape.
“There are opportunities here, so we are very hopeful that those folks displaced by Klaussner will be able to have quick opportunities to go back to work and start earning that paycheck … Hopefully, the impact will be minimal,” said Kevin Franklin, the president of RCEDC.
Franklin says the unemployment rate is around 3.7 percent. With big names like Toyota and Energizer announcing new jobs, that will help with the long-term impacts. But businesses may notice some impacts in the short term.
“They go out to eat. They spend money at the grocery stores … At the very least that is going to get curtailed while they look for work again,” Franklin said.
The economy is in better shape than other hard times that Asheboro has faced like when the mills closed downtown. Even then, Asheboro recovered.
“We have had to deal with it before, and things have worked out pretty good, so Asheboro is a growing town, and we are proud of Asheboro,” Southard said.
Only time can tell what all of this will mean for the community. Right now, people are staying positive and making sure to show support to all their friends, family and neighbors who lost their job.
