Party City is facing its second bankruptcy in two years

Party City is facing its second bankruptcy in two years

The party may finally be over for one of the largest retailers of balloons and costumes.

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A Party City store in Gaithersburg, Maryland

Party City Holdco Inc. is considering bankruptcy in the next few weeks for the second time in two years, Bloomberg reported, citing anonymous sources. According to the outlet, the company stopped paying rent at some locations because it was running low on cash.

The previous bankruptcy allowed Party City to pay off $1 billion of its $1.8 billion in debt and close 60 stores. This time, Party City’s bankruptcy could cause the party supplies retailer to close all of its 700 stores across the country.

Party City — owned by creditors including Silver Point Capital, which acquired the retailer after it filed for bankruptcy in 2023 — has struggled with sluggish sales for years. According to Bloomberg, debt relief hasn’t been enough to address slow sales. The company was also impacted by a nationwide helium shortage.

Party City is part of a wave of national retailers facing bankruptcy or liquidation, including Big Lots, Lumber Liquidators and Conn’s. As of November, retailers have closed more than 7,100 stores nationwide, a 69% increase over the same period in 2023, CBS News recently reported, citing data from CoreSite. 45 retailers have filed for bankruptcy protection this year, significantly more than 25 in 2023.

Bloomberg reported that the timing of Party City’s possible bankruptcy is still uncertain and that final plans could still change.

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