A Northern Ireland furniture retailer has gone into liquidation after more than 30 years in business with the loss of at least 20 jobs.
Ardis furniture shops in Belfast and Lisburn, gift shops in Saintfield and Banbridge and its 50,000 sq ft flagship store in Gilford have all closed.
As well as shop floor staff, employees in the flagship store's cafe and design studio have also lost their posts.
However, founder David Ardis told the Belfast Telegraph: "Work is ongoing to salvage the cafe as well as the design and manufacturing divisions of the business."
A two-day liquidation sale was held over Friday and Saturday, with the remaining furniture stock sold at discounted prices from the Gilford premises.
Mr Ardis founded Ardis Living in 1976. In 2003, the large anchor store opened in Gilford and the group embarked on further expansion in March 2006 with the acquisition of Lisburn furniture store Warwick Living.
In October of that year, Ardis Living took over Gilbert Logan, the furniture manufacturer and retailer established in Belfast in 1926. The company's founder famously created the captain's table and other furniture items for the doomed Titanic ocean liner.
Dr Karise Hutchinson, a lecturer at the University of Ulster's department of business, retail and finance, told the Belfast Telegraph large discount stores are putting pressure on independent retailers.
"When you have Ikea in the province, it is difficult to compete on style and value for money," said Dr Hutchinson.
"A smaller shop doesn't have the economies of scale or buying power needed. Consumers are price sensitive, but they still want nice things for their homes, especially when times are tight.
"They are less likely to be moving house and will be spending more time at home as they can't afford to go out socialising."
She also suggested banks had some responsibility.
"Shops like these need to invest heavily in stock and unless they are able to borrow, they won't be able to buy in what they need," she added.
Ardis Living is the latest furniture retailer to go out of business in recent weeks. Earlier this month, Dekko closed its stores on Belfast's Boucher Road and the Junction One shopping complex in Co Antrim.
Founder and managing director Michael Bambrick said uncertainty over job and income prospects during the recession was leading people to defer furniture buys.
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