Party City ends nearly 40 years of fun

Every party ends the same way: unassumingly, a little later (or earlier) than you thought it would and yet simultaneously all of a sudden.

For Party City, it was no different. The largest party supply company in the U.S. is closing all of its stores after almost 40 years of being in business, CNN reported, with operations shutting down immediately and all locations shuttering in February.

In a video conference call, Party City CEO Barry Litwin told corporate employees that Friday would be their last day of employment. A Party City employee who wished to remain anonymous told CNN that management had previously expressed optimism about the company’s business.

Party City had approximately 6,400 full-time and 10,100 part-time workers as of 2021, CNN reported.

The chain declared bankruptcy in January 2023 and announced Litwin as its new CEO four months ago. Party City exited bankruptcy a month later, with more than $800 million in debt to repay. 

The company’s previous debt totaled $1.7 billion. Party City closed more than 80 locations between 2022 and 2024, though more than 800 stores stayed open.

Like other retailers that have closed in recent months, Party City faced rising costs due to inflation and competition from e-commerce sites like Amazon and Walmart. A helium shortage hurt Party City’s balloon business.

“It’s really important for you to know that we’ve done everything possible that we could to try to avoid this outcome,” Litwin said during Party City’s last meeting. “Unfortunately, it’s necessary to commence a wind-down process immediately."