STORY: North America's largest party goods retailer to shut down all stores
SHOOTING TIME: Dec. 21, 2024
DATELINE: Dec. 22, 2024
LENGTH: 0:01:17
LOCATION: LOS ANGELES, U.S.
CATEGORY: ECONOMY

SHOTLIST:
1. various of a Party City store

STORYLINE:

Party City, the largest retailer of party goods in North America, will shut down all of its stores according to U.S. media reports on Friday. The company has been in business for nearly 40 years. 

Barry Litwin, chief executive officer of Party City, told corporate employees Friday in a meeting viewed by CNN that the company is "winding down" operations immediately and that Friday will be their last day of employment.

Party City's "very best efforts have not been enough to overcome" its financial challenges, Litwin was quoted as saying by CNN.

CNN reported that Party City filed for bankruptcy in January 2023 after struggling to pay off its 1.7 billion U.S. dollar debt load.

Party City was able to exit bankruptcy in September 2023 with the cancellation of nearly 1 billion dollars in debt, the dissolution of company stock, and a majority of its U.S. stores staying open, according to CNN.

The company closed more than 80 stores from the end of 2022 to August 2024, CNN reported, citing the company's most recent financial documents. The company suffered strained earnings due to the more than 800 million dollars in debt it still had to overcome, the report added.

Multiple news outlets reported earlier this month that the company may file for bankruptcy a second time.

Headquartered in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey, Party City is a global leader in the celebrations industry and has offerings spanning more than 70 countries around the world. Party City says that it operates more than 700 company-owned and franchise stores across North America.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Los Angeles, U.S.
(XHTV)