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Coast businessman Keith Rhodes and two other franchisees are buying the Rug Decor division from CCA Global Partners of St. Louis for an undisclosed amount.

Rhodes owns Rug Decor stores in Gulfport; Spanish Fort, Ala.; and Destin, Fla. Rick Ruby owns one store and Bob Ellis owns two locations. There is one corporate store in St. Louis. In addition to the seven company-owned stores there are 16 franchises across the country.

Rhodes said he wants to expand.

“We’re hoping in the near future to add more franchisees and more company-owned stores,” he said. “We also plan to develop a better Web site for online purchases.”

Rhodes opened his first Rug Decor store in 2001. He also owns The Floor Trader flooring-specialty stores in Gulfport, Gautier and Mobile.

The Rug Decor deal has been in the works since February and should be finalized in about 10 days, he said.

CCA Global Partners said in a statement Rug Decor “is not central to CCA’s core flooring business or strategy” but “remains supportive of the Rug Decor franchisees and the new business owners.”

Headquarters for Rug Decor will be in St. Louis.

Customers shouldn’t notice any changes under the new ownership, Rhodes said. “No one should know the difference. We’re putting more rugs in the stores and prices will be as good or better in the near future.”

CCA Global Partners, one of the largest privately held companies in the United States, has 15 independent business brands, more than 3,800 locations and over $10 billion in sales.

Posted at www.sunherald.com on July 27, 2009

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