The upcoming closure of Christmas Tree Shops has dealt a devastating blow to its employees, with 37 workers at the Cherry Hill store facing layoffs. The company’s decision to liquidate all of its stores was revealed in recent court filings, with plans to shut down all remaining locations by the end of August.
At the time of the announcement, Christmas Tree Shops had 10 New Jersey stores, and the human cost of the closure has become apparent with the chain filing notices for 531 layoffs from those stores.
As of Monday, nine stores are still operational, including the locations in Brick, Deptford, Freehold, Mays Landing, Paramus, Rockaway, Springfield, and Woodland Park. Regrettably, the Christmas Tree Shops in Bridgewater has already closed its doors.
Here is the breakdown of the number of layoffs from each store, based on notices from the New Jersey Department of Labor:
- Springfield: 143 employees
- Brick: 61 employees
- Bridgewater: 40 employees
- Cherry Hill: 37 employees
- Deptford: 33 employees
- Freehold: 51 employees
- Mays Landing: 10 employees
- Paramus: 48 employees
- Rockaway: 40 employees
- Woodland Park: 58 employees
The precise timeline for the closures of the remaining New Jersey stores remains uncertain, but the process is progressing rapidly. Recently, Christmas Tree Shops closed seven of its stores in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, as reported by CBS Boston.
Christmas Tree Shops had previously filed for bankruptcy in May, following the financial difficulties of its parent company. In 1970, the first Christmas Tree Shops store was established in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The New Jersey-based Bed Bath & Beyond acquired the chain in 2003 and later opened stores in the Garden State three years afterward.
However, in November 2020, Bed Bath & Beyond sold Christmas Tree Shops to Handil Holdings. Despite the change in ownership, the company faced insurmountable challenges, leading to the difficult decision to liquidate its stores.
The Christmas Tree Shops store in Cherry Hill, located at 2130 Marlton Pike, will soon close its doors, affecting the livelihoods of its dedicated workers. The closure marks the end of an era for the once-thriving home-goods chain.
