SELYUKH: David Silverman is a senior director at Fitch Ratings, listing off some notable bankruptcies of recent years. This story has played out with many once-unrivaled chains.ĭAVID SILVERMAN: Toys "R" Us is an example, Neiman Marcus, J. And that's why it's filed for bankruptcy - to get its debt under control. And through it all, Party City has been carrying a big burden - almost $2 billion in debt. People have been looking a bit more closely at their party budgets. SELYUKH: These days, inflation is the latest scare. Then, things got really dicey during the pandemic.įELDMAN: Social gathering really ground to a halt for, like, two years, right? Party City is the place you go for social gathering supplies. SELYUKH: Add to that some peculiar challenges of a party store, like the helium shortage - a global problem that just won't go away - for years now making Party City's big balloon business a bit of a trick. UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #4: Halloween - be flirty, be scary. SELYUKH: Now, even Home Depot is in the giant plastic skeleton game, not to mention Spirit Halloween chomping at Party City's most important season. JOE FELDMAN: I mean, there's a lot of other places you can get party supplies, whether it's at Walmart or Target or Amazon or the dollar store or even the grocer's. Joe Feldman is an analyst at Telsey Advisory Group. SELYUKH: But little by little, competition stacked up. UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: Shop Party City for Valentine's Day. SELYUKH: Vampire teeth, party hats, wigs and streamers - a vast selection of fairly cheap items unmatched by other stores - things that people like to buy in person, not online.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: You boo you, only at Party City. The stuff it sells didn't used to have a ton of competition. NPR's Alina Selyukh explains.ĪLINA SELYUKH, BYLINE: Years ago, Party City held big promise. But this purveyor of balloons, costumes and party supplies has filed for bankruptcy.
Lunar New Year, Valentine's Day, Mardi Gras - for a range of holidays, celebrations, kids' and grown-up birthdays, Americans have shopped at Party City.
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