Dive Brief:
- Party City is re-opening locations that feature the retailer’s new store format in Gaithersburg, Maryland, and Pensacola, Florida, on Saturday and in Princeton, New Jersey on June 1, the company said in separate announcements on Monday.
- With the redesigned spaces, the retailer is showcasing a dedicated service area for balloons. The new format also features “birthday worlds” that are mini-shops within the locations.
- Party City plans to introduce the new format to more locations this year, per the press release.
Dive Insight:
Party City’s store revamp plans are coming to fruition. In late February, the company said it aimed to open new store formats following a successful pilot. Along with the focus on Party City’s balloon selection, the new store formats will also have new items for children’s celebrations, including popular toys, party favors and other party goods.
“With this introduction, we have moved away from the traditional aisle experience and have developed two birthday worlds within each store,” Dion Miliaresis, vice president of merchandising at Party City, said in a statement. “One is dedicated to kids’ birthdays, and one for general birthday celebrations. These are complete mini-shops, with everything brought together in one place — this makes it easy for the customer to find everything they need and to hopefully discover a few surprises and fun ideas to add to their celebration along the way.”
Party City is unveiling revamped stores following the retailer’s - and its balloon supplier’s - recent bankruptcy filings.
In October, Party City Holdco said it had finalized its restructuring plans and exited bankruptcy. The following month, the company’s CEO, Brad Weston, left the company, and then-president and Chief Commercial Officer Sean Thompson became the retailer’s interim chief executive.
Meanwhile, Anagram, a balloon manufacturer and Party City subsidiary, also filed for bankruptcy late last year. The company exited Chapter 11 at the start of 2024 and emerged as an independent company.