After being in the business for almost four decades, Party City Stores decided to close the stores. This was announced on Friday when a meeting was arranged by the CEO Barry Litwin who told the employees that that would be their last working day, several news channels were present there to witness the announcement.
The Downfall of Party City
The company tried its best to fix its financial situation but the CEO told the press that it became very difficult to control the inflation and it increased the expenses and reduced the consumer spending. Litwin was announced as the CEO just four months ago and he was very disappointed because they had to take this decision. The company was able to get out of the bankruptcy after a month Litwin took over. By January 2023, the company had to file for bankruptcy and pay almost $1 billion of its debt after its struggle to pay a $1.7 billion debt loan. Somehow, they also managed to keep the 800 stores open and working even after closing the 80 outlets between the end of 2022 and August 2024 but even after trying so hard, they still had to pay $800 million which did not look good this year and hence, decided to close the company.
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The Staff’s reaction
The corporate employees were shocked to hear the news as during the last few weeks, word spread through the office about the shutting down of Part City. According to one of the employees, the company’s product development team was called back from their annual trip with vendors two weeks ago and was immediately asked to go back to their homes. Since the company stopped paying its suppliers due to the debt, the trip was a concern for their safety. Employees were shocked as this was not even mentioned in any of the recent meetings that they had and even Litwin was sorry to them for not being able to communicate properly. The company’s Human Resources officer was seen tearing up on camera as she could not take the sad news.
Conclusion
From the records of 2021, the company had approximately 6,600 full-time workers and 10,100 part-time, they all lost their jobs. The competition with Amazon, Walmart, and other big chains destroyed the small chains since they became more popular than these stores. Like this, another company “Big Lots” also announced that they are going out of business as well.
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Faq
1.Why is Party City closing its stores?
Party City is closing due to financial difficulties, including inflation, reduced consumer spending, and an inability to manage its remaining $800 million debt.
2. When was the announcement made?
The announcement was made on a Friday during a meeting led by CEO Barry Litwin, who informed employees that it would be their last working day.
3. How many stores did Party City have, and how many were closed before this decision?
Party City managed to keep 800 stores operational despite closing 80 outlets between late 2022 and August 2024.
