On the record · Other
Party City
Thomas H. Lee Partners loaded Party City with debt from a 2012 leveraged buyout, preventing critical technology investments needed to compete online. Filed its second Chapter 11 in December 2024 and liquidated all ~700 U.S. stores. All administrative staff laid off upon filing.
Research depth
Outcomes researched
Reviewed operating findings or a classified operating outcome are available.
Record updated Sept. 4, 2026
Current ownership
Current owner not established
This record does not identify a current owner. That absence is a gap in the record, not a conclusion about ownership.
1 ownership record has an unresolved current/former status.
Ownership and transaction history
Chronology from recorded ownership periods, transactions and reviewed outcome events. Event order does not imply causation.
Feb. 28, 2025
Operations ceased
Operating outcome
April 21, 2026
Revival or successor activity recorded
Operating outcome
Date not recorded
What happened under and after ownership
Operating outcome
Ceased operations, then returned
Filed a second Chapter 11 on December 21, 2024, this time as a full liquidation rather than a restructuring, and closed all roughly 700 remaining stores by the end of February 2025, a little over a year after emerging from its first Chapter 11.
New Amscan, an Ad Populum affiliate, bought Party City's intellectual property and wholesale operations for $20 million at the bankruptcy auction. On April 21, 2026 it relaunched Party City as shop-in-shops in more than 700 Staples stores and online.
Owned and operated by Ad Populum, which controls the brand and its Staples-based retail footprint; no standalone Party City store has reopened.
- Founded
- 1986
- Sponsor at closure
- Lender group led by Silver Point Capital
- NPR · 2024 · second Chapter 11 filing date, full wind-down of ~700 stores, prior ownership by lenders including Silver Point Capital after the 2023 restructuring
- Retail Dive · 2025 · New Amscan/Ad Populum bought Party City IP and wholesale business for $20 million at bankruptcy auction
- Business Wire (company primary) · 2026 · Staples partnership announcement date, shop-in-shop relaunch in 700+ Staples stores and online
What we do not know
These are gaps in the public record, not findings about the organization.
- No current public ownership assessment has been published.
Help improve this record
Firsthand experience, public sources and corrections can help close the gaps above.