The mood at Party City was far from festive on Friday, as CNN reported that the retailer will abruptly close its stores and ultimately let all of its employees leave, ending a nearly 40-year history.
Party City specialized in items such as balloons, Halloween costumes and party favors, and CNN noted that it faced competition from major retailers like Amazon, Costco and Walmart, as well as e-commerce sites and pop-up initiatives like Spirit Halloween.
The company had approximately 6,400 full-time employees and 10,100 part-time workers in 2021, according to CNN.
Barry Litwin took over as chairman and CEO in August and Party City emerged from bankruptcy in September, CNN reported, adding that the company declared bankruptcy in January 2023, helping it write off nearly a billion dollars of debt and to keep the doors open as much as possible. of its more than 800 locations, but it was still saddled with debt of more than $800 million.
CNN viewed a meeting with Party City employees via video conference in which Litwin said inflation had led to increased costs and lower sales and apologized for the lack of communication before Friday’s events , while human resources director Karen McGowan tearfully announced that employees would do so. will not receive severance pay and their benefits will end.
Rank-and-file employees wouldn’t have known the writing was on the wall, but CNN reported that Party City had recalled its product development team from its annual trip with suppliers earlier this month for safety reasons, because the company had stopped payments to suppliers, adding that company employees were sent home from their headquarters in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey, on December 10, and told they had to provide one day’s notice if they wished to access to the building.
Friday’s news capped a tough week for retail, as the discount chain Big prizes announced Thursday that a sale of the company had been scuttled and that it would close its 963 stores.
