Party City filed for bankruptcy Saturday for the second time in less than two years.<\/p>\n
The filing comes after the retailer told employees Friday it would begin \u201cwinding down\u201d operations. The nation\u2019s largest party supply chain said in a statement that filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy would \u201cmaximize value\u201d for its stakeholders and close in the \u201cmost efficient manner.\u201d<\/p>\n
Party City employees received letters on Friday that\u00a0stores would close on February 28. In the meantime, Party City said in a statement that its stores, of which there are about 700, will remain open with \u201cgoing out of business\u201d sales while supplies last. About 95% of the company\u2019s 12,000 employees will be retained, the company reported.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt has been a true pleasure to be a part of your most special moments over the years. And, in the coming weeks, we hope you stop by to say goodbye and pick up your favorite items, whether you\u2019re organizing a big celebration now or planning ahead for milestone moments to come,\u201d according to a\u00a0company statement\u00a0in the filing.<\/p>\n
Party City did not respond to CNN\u2019s request for comment.<\/p>\n
The New Jersey-based company faced inflationary pressures on product costs, which reduced consumer spending, according to CEO Barry Litwin. Coupled with other factors, like its $800 million outstanding debt, it filed for its second bankruptcy.<\/p>\n
Party City Holdco Inc. previously\u00a0declared bankruptcy\u00a0in January 2023 after struggling to pay off its nearly $1.7 billion debt. It was eventually able to slash nearly $1 billion and closed more than 80 locations between the end of 2022 to August 2024, according to its most recent financial documents. Party City appointed Litwin to serve as CEO in August and was able to exit bankruptcy a month later.<\/p>\n
In its latest filing, Party City said it made \u201cexhaustive efforts\u201d to find a path forward that would allow for continued operations.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really important for you to know that we\u2019ve done everything possible that we could to try to avoid this outcome,\u201d Litwin told corporate employees Friday in a meeting viewed by CNN. \u201cUnfortunately, it\u2019s necessary to commence a winddown process immediately.\u201d<\/p>\n
The company has faced competition from e-commerce sites and pop-up supply concepts like\u00a0Spirit Halloween. Big box retailers have also\u00a0crushed smaller chains.<\/p>\n
Major chains are on track to close the highest number of stores for a year since 2020, according to Coresight Research. On Thursday,\u00a0Big Lots announced\u00a0it was starting \u201cgoing out of business\u201d sales at all of its locations after a plan for a private equity firm to rescue it from bankruptcy failed.<\/p>\n
By Agencies <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Party City filed for bankruptcy Saturday for the second time in less than two years. The filing comes after the retailer told employees Friday it would begin \u201cwinding down\u201d operations. The nation\u2019s largest party supply chain said in a statement that filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy would \u201cmaximize value\u201d for its stakeholders and close in<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":136,"featured_media":286941,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-286940","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business"},"yoast_head":"\n