Party City has announced it will close down all of its stores, ending almost 40 years in business.
CNN reported that ceo Barry Litwin told employees that the retailer was ‘winding down’ operations immediately and that Friday 20 December would be their last day of employment.
Staff were reportedly informed they would not receive severance pay and that their benefits would end as the company goes out of business.
Barry said Party City’s ‘very best efforts have not been enough to overcome’ its financial challenges over recent years. He added: “It’s really important for you to know that we’ve done everything possible that we could to try to avoid this outcome. Unfortunately, it’s necessary to commence a wind down process immediately.”
Corporate employees were sent home on 10 December and security at HQ locked the doors to the front entrance.
Party City went into bankruptcy in January 2023 with $1.7bn of debt. The process cleared almost $1bn of debt, but the remaining debt has proved too much to overcome.
On the call with staff, Barry reportedly apologised for the lack of communication, saying: “We recognise the flow of communication has not been how we typically handle sensitive matters like this.”
