Party City plans to close 45 of its 870 stores in 2019, the company said on Thursday.
The party-supplies company also said it has secured a new source of helium that should help relieve pressure from a global helium shortage that has squeezed balloon sales. The store closures are unrelated to the helium shortage, the company said.
"We believe this new source should substantially eliminate the shortfall we are experiencing at current allocation rates and improve our ability to return to a normal level of latex and metallic balloon sales," Party City CEO James Harrison said in a press release.
Party City made the announcements as it reported first-quarter revenue growth of 1% to $513 million and retail sales growth of 4%.
Read more: More than 6,200 stores are closing in 2019 as the retail apocalypse drags on — here's the full list
The company typically closes about 10 to 15 stores annually, but it will close a higher number of stores this year so it can better focus on its most profitable locations, Harrison said.
"This year, after careful consideration and evaluation of our store fleet, we've made the decision to close more stores than usual in order to help optimize our market level performance, focus on the most profitable locations and improve the overall health of our store portfolio," he said.
Party City did not immediately respond to a request for information on which store locations would be affected by the closings. But the company has already confirmed some closures to local media outlets.
Here's the list of closings that have been confirmed so far:
- 19037 Golden Valley Road, Santa Clarita, California
- 300 S. Highland Springs Ave., Banning, California
- 3629 W. Florida Ave., Hemet, California
- 533 S. Broad St., Meriden, Connecticut
- 2350 Sycamore Road, DeKalb, Illinois
- 17160 Mercantile Blvd., Noblesville, Indiana
- 250 Plainfield Road, West Lebanon, New Hampshire
- 1020 N. Stratford Road, Moses Lake, Washington
If you know of any stores missing from this list, contact hpeterson@bjinnox.com.
