Colorado Real Estate Journal - April 15, 2015
Appliance Factory & Mattress Kingdom is boosting its profile with the $16.02 million acquisition of a longvacant building on Interstate 25 in Thornton. The appliance retailer bought the former Ultimate Electronics building at 321 E. 84th Ave. from Wattles Real Estate Partners LLC, according to public records. The 338,651-square-foot building has been empty since Ultimate Electronics vacated it in 2011. Colorado-based Appliance Factory & Mattress Kingdom will move its warehouse and Thornton showroom to the building, creating a new flagship store. “It’s going to be a huge game-changer for us,” said John Higgins, Appliance Factory’s media director. “Our new warehouse and flagship store will really set the stage for the future growth of our organization and solidify our place as the leading appliance retailer in Colorado.” There will be showroom space for various divisions of the company as well as for Contract Appliance, an affiliated company that specializes in high-end products. The company also will relocate some office functions to the building, maintaining its corporate offices at 6005 E. Evans Ave. in Denver, Higgins said. Appliance Factory & Mattress Kingdom has 13 locations on the Front Range and another in Grand Junction. It is among the largest appliance dealers in the nation. The new warehouse will dramatically expand its capabilities, Higgins said. “We’ve been trying to make do, but it’s an ongoing struggle because of the inventory we have and the volume we produce,” he said. According to Appliance Factory, the company sells one of every four appliances purchased in Colorado. “This property will allow us to do things in the near future that will be unlike anything any other appliance retailer in Colorado has the ability to do,” said Higgins. “The residents of Colorado and our employees have allowed us to have tremendous growth over the last 29 years, which is why we are so proud and thankful that our years of hard work and dedication have allowed us the good fortune to obtain a facility that is as amazing as this one.” “Appliance Factory is a successful company that is growing and continues to grow. This is a great opportunity for them to have a great presence on I-25, in addition to their other 13 locations,” said David Fried of DTZ, who represented the company with DTZ’s Robert Hudgins. “There will be more than 190 employees there, which is great,” commented Adam Krueger, assistant director of economic development for the city of Thornton. “The building has been vacant for a number of years. We’re glad to see it purchased and occupied again, and we’re excited to have the 190 jobs there,” he said. CBRE’s Mike Camp and Jim Bolt represented the seller in the transaction. The building consists of 228,864 sf of cross-dock industrial space with 32- to 38-foot clear height, 69,924 sf of offices and 40,163 sf of retail space on 35.56 acres of land. Appliance Factory & Mattress Kingdom will sublease approximately 75,000 sf of the warehouse space and about 50,000 sf of office space. “We’re going to be looking for good partners,” Higgins said. Appliance Factory expects to be in the building within about 30 days. Formerly Ultimate Electronics’ corporate headquarters, the building was constructed in 1996 and expanded in 2001. Wattles Real Estate Partners, which was associated with Ultimate Electronics, had owned the building since early 2006. It acquired the property for $14.9 million.