Candlelight Cabinetry in Lockport, New York, has furloughed its employees and is reportedly facing lawsuits that add up to more $6 million dollars.

Reportedly, the furloughed employees have not been paid for two weeks. A former executive with the cabinet company told Woodworking Network that he has been in contact with many employees who said that they have not been paid money owed to them.

Andrew Olsen, Candlelight Cabinetry, told Woodworking Network by text, said that there were a lot of unsubstantiated rumors going around and that he is working on a deal to solve cash flow issues and pay off creditors. 

"I can tell you that we have not had a single layoff," he said, "however, we did furlough some employees for what we think will be a week or two while we work on a partnership to ensure long-term liability of the company.’

Olsen said that the company is “still feeling the effects of the unsuccessful attempt to save the Haas company from the damage caused by their family and the hurdles they put in front."

In the summer of 2024, Cotton Bay Corp, the diversified holding company owned by Olsen, announced plans to acquire Haas Cabinet Co. Inc., the Indiana-based company that had been in business for more than 80 years, but had announced in May that it was closing the business. The deal eventually fell through for reasons not stated.

One former employee, writing on social media in late January, said that employees were told that the company’s doors were closing and that everyone needed to grab their personal belongings. The employee wrote that management would be in contact with employees to update them on when they'd be able to come back to work. Woodworking Network reached out to this employee, but had not received a response. 

Candlelight Cabinetry, which was established in 1990, and at one point had more than 200 employees, was acquired by Olsen and his wife in 2023.

The former executive said that the problem with the company was cash flow problems that made it difficult to meet orders. The executive said that they had plenty of orders, but the orders couldn’t be filled.

In an email to Woodworking Network, dealers expressed worries that they would not get their orders. These worries were fed by phone calls going unanswered. Woodworking Network also attempted to reach the company, but were not able to get ahold of anyone at the company. Calls to specific management personnel were diverted to a human resources voicemail. A message that was left on the voicemail system was not returned. Olsen said in his text that the company was having problems with the phone lines due to severe storms in the area. 

The dealers also expressed worries about their orders because a scheduled dealer training Webinar was not conducted and that there had been no warning of cancellation. Olsen said that "As for the Webinar, it was recorded." The former executive disputed this saying that it could not have been recorded as the person who was to conduct the Webinar had been dismissed an hour before it was scheduled to take place.

One customer writing on social media said that they have had orders placed since September of 2025 that were affected by delays, components on “Backorder”, damage, poor finishing issues, and orders pushed back 2-3 months after the expected shipment. “We’re currently canceling all orders and shifting customers to other brands as an alternative.”

Another customer, a homeowner, told Woodworking Network that they had to cancel their order because their cabinets were not delivered when expected, despite assurances that they were completed. That customer did not lose any direct money as their money was being held in escrow by another party, but they had expended a lot of money to get the space prepared in time for delivery, which included plumbing, electric and HVAC work, and multiple load-bearing walls that had to be removed and the foundation reinforced.