Battered by Asian imports, a surging Canadian dollar and slumping US economy, two major Canadian juvenile furniture makers have filed for bankruptcy protection in the past month. Morigeau and Shermag, both based in Quebec, are major players in the nursery furniture market here in the U.S.

The latest casualty is Morigeau, which specializes in high-end furniture and has been one of the top-rated companies in our book for several years. Founded in 1945, Morigeau entered the U.S. market in 1983 and slowly built itself into one of the market’s premium brands.

Morigeau’s sales manager, Ian Sacks, tells BABY BARGAINS the company plans to continue normal operations as it reorganizes under bankruptcy protection. Sacks did say that shipments were halted last week before the filing Friday, but the company hopes to start shipping again shortly. We hope to blog more details on the Morigeau bankruptcy shortly.

Morigeau’s key pitch was style and quality—all furniture is made in Canada. That decision clearly came back to haunt the company, as imported goods from China undercut Morigeau’s prices by a huge margin. A surging Canadian dollar also made production in Canada much more expensive, further eroding margins. Sacks refused to say how far sales have fallen, but he pointed out the entire industry is in a slump.

The story is much the same at Shermag, which is a maker of glider rockers and nursery furniture (sold under its own name and Chanderic, it’s upper-end division) that filed for bankruptcy protection May 6 in Canada. Shermag has seen its sales plunge 40% in the past year. Shermag has over C$30 million in debt and has been closing plants in Canada and moving production to Asia during the past  year.

Update 7-15-08: Morigeau has started shipping again, according to a notice the company has sent out to readers.