Around 1914 the Ayres family established Murray Investments, a holding company that owned the store's real estate, which was leased back to Ayres. The subsidiary also provided for future expansions with the acquisition of additional land in Anderson, Indianapolis, South Bend, and Evansville, Indiana. Owned by the Ayres family, Murray Investments merged with L. S. Ayres Company in the late 1960s and provided the company with approximately $3.6 million in equity capital. The merger also increased Ayres family ownership of the company to 67 percent.