Import company's buyer to be picked

The receiver for Pacific Rim Import of Seattle plans to announce by the end of the week the winning bid for the home decoration supplier's assets.

But some sales representatives for the company, who claim they are owed tens of thousands of dollars in commissions, aren't sure what the sale will mean for them.

The privately held company was put into receivership last month after Bank of America sued in King County Superior Court to collect $5.8 million in debt. The lawsuit also names Intercon Sales, the selling arm of Pacific Rim Import.

Pacific Rim owners Ronald "Buzz" and Diane Benson attempted unsuccessfully to buy back a "significant amount" of the company's assets on behalf of their new company Pacific Décor, according to an e-mail they sent to sales representatives.

By mid-March, receiver Inverness Group had obtained about 40 bids from interested parties in Seattle and across the country. The Bensons and Inverness Group declined to comment for this story.

The 40-year-old company was regarded as one of the nation's largest home décor and accessory suppliers, with annual sales estimated at about $74 million by research company Hoover's. At one time, the company reportedly operated 15 showrooms across the country with between 75-90 sales representatives, and employed about 200 people in its Seattle office.

Since the company went into receivership, several former sales representatives have filed claims for unpaid commissions ranging from about $24,000 to $45,000 each.

"We're kind of in this strange limbo," said former sales representative Mark Brewer, who is based in Michigan. "It's so unfair that we worked so hard and then to find all this out."

Pacific Rim Import shocked many people in the home-décor industry with its abrupt closure last month, but apparently its financial troubles started as early as 2003. According to the e-mail sent to sales representatives, sales dropped from 2003 through 2005, and "our 2006 sales ended with an increase, but only by a small margin."

The company's sales representatives, working as independent contractors, received monthly draw checks to cover expenses between quarterly commission checks.

Sales reps said their first indication that something was wrong at Pacific Rim Import was in early January, when their draw checks were $500 to $1,000 less than normal.

Then, at the end of January, sales reps didn't receive their fourth-quarter checks, said former sales representative Dick Paddock, also based in Michigan. Paddock has filed a claim for $24,700 in unpaid commissions with the receiver's attorney, Diana Carey of Karr Tuttle Campbell in Seattle.

Soon after, Pacific Rim Import went into receivership. The "network of showrooms was one of the first 'assets' to go" and showroom and warehouse leases were terminated, according to the e-mail.

"We never heard anything from the company officially during this time," Paddock said. "That's the worst part. Most of the reps would probably have tried to help the company get through this period. It's a great company, and it's a shame what happened to it."

Kirsten Orsini-Meinhard: 206-464-2391 or kmeinhard@seattletimes.com