With financial upheaval seemingly everywhere you look, keeping a brick-and-mortar business open these days seems like less of a normal expectation and more of a miracle.
This is doubly so for smaller businesses and those who deal in specialty retail. But some well-known names have also had to make the dreaded announcement in the last year. Just a few of those casualties: Joann Fabrics, which has been around for 81 years, Party City, which spent four decades in business, Tupperware, which seems so ubiquitous its hard to imagine it shuttering, and Express, which was once upon a time the trendiest store in any shopping mall.
💵💰Don’t miss the move: Subscribe to TheStreet’s free daily newsletter💰💵
There are always some nice saves among these bankruptcy stories – like long beloved Toys ‘R’ Us for example, which filed for bankruptcy in 2018 but is now due to reopen in airports (and it can also be found within Macy’s stores). A comeback like that definitely makes this writer’s inner kid grin.
Speaking of comebacks, one speciality retailer just announced theirs, and if you needed a break from stressful tariff news, you might enjoy this one.
Clinton’s cheery red entrance won’t be going away after all.
Getty Images
Beloved retailer gets a second chance
Clinton’s, a UK card retailer that’s been around for 57 years, had a close call back in 2022 when it was forced to shutter 71 of its stores and cut 300 jobs.
The retailer reported a pre-tax loss of £5.4m in the 12 months ending May 27, 2023, down significantly from its pre-tax profit of £7.6m in the year before.
However, thanks to a purchase by Pillarbox Designs in March 2024 and a plan to borrow £4.5m to stay afloat during the current financial year, Clinton’s has a second chance. The gift card company has posted a pre-tax profit of £8m for the year, which means its back in the black again.
However, getting these has been a challenge. The chain has cut its portfolio to 170 stores, focusing on the profitable locations only, which it called a “difficult decision.”
“During the year, the company entered into a restructuring plan that removed certain liabilities and reduced the level of business rates paid to March 2024,” the company said.
Related: Popular athletic shoe chain files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
Another issue Clinton’s is dealing with is the recent increase in minimum wage in the UK. The National Living Wage for people 21 years of age and older went from £11.44 ($14.56 US) per hour to £12.21 ($15.54 US) per hour, while the wage for 18-20 year olds went from £8.60 ($10.95 US) to £10.00 ($12.73 US).
“Like many other retailers, the company continues to face significant cost pressure on wages given the increases in the national minimum wage,” Clinton’s said.
Originally founded in 1968, Clinton’s — originally called Clinton’s Cards before the company went to just Clinton’s in 2012 – was founded by Dan Lewin and named after his son.
The state of the greeting card market
While the demand for greeting cards has certainly changed since the advent of the internet, the market is still a viable one. US consumers purchase 6.5 billion greeting cards yearly, according to the Greeting Card Association.
Hallmark, the best-known greeting card store in the US and one that is still privately held, continues to operate both in America and overseas. The chain closed 16 stores in 2020, but otherwise seems to be going strong.
Sadly, the story is not the same for Papyrus, which was forced to shutter its 254 stores after parent company Schurman Fine Papers filed for bankruptcy in 2020. The company cited its reasoning as “the general downturn in the brick-and-mortar retail industry.”
Related: Popular ice cream brand sells its assets in bankruptcy
