UpTrajectory Review
Party City is pivoting from its impending closure by partnering with Staples to create a shop-within-a-shop model, allowing customers to find party supplies alongside office products. This strategic move comes just in time for graduation season, a peak time for celebration-related spending, which is projected to exceed $7.2 billion in 2026. By integrating Party City products into Staples locations, the companies aim to enhance customer convenience and broaden their offerings.
For small business owners, this partnership highlights the importance of adaptability in the face of challenges. Party City’s shift to a collaborative retail model could inspire other businesses to explore similar partnerships or diversify their product offerings. However, it remains to be seen if this strategy will be sustainable long-term, especially given Party City's recent financial struggles. Operators should watch how this model performs and consider whether a similar approach could benefit their own businesses.
““By bringing Party City into Staples stores, we’re expanding what customers can accomplish in one place.”” — Fast Company
Takeaway: Consider strategic partnerships to enhance your product offerings and customer convenience.
From the original item — Fast Company:
For one retailer, the party never ends. After announcing it would shutter all 700 nationwide stores in late 2024, Party City is back. Well, kind of.
Consumers can now find all their celebration needs within Staples’ aisles. In April, the companies announced that Staples would begin offering Party City products inside more than 700 stores, thanks to a strategic “shop-within-a-shop” partnership.
The announcement was strategically made ahead of graduation season. Consumer spending on goods and services tied to commencement exceeded $6.8 billion in 2025. That total is expected to surpass a record $7.2 billion in 2026.
“By bringing Party City into Staples stores, we’re expanding what customers can accomplish in one place—combining helium balloons and party supplies with our print and marketing services to offer a complete solution for celebrations, from graduations to grand openings and everything in between,” said Marshall Warkentin, the president of Staples U.S. Retail, in the April announcement.
Party City’s in-store products include balloons, gift bags, costume accessories, party favors, décor, and tableware. Now, shoppers can also create personalized invitations, banners, yard signs, and posters through Staples’ print services.
The range of Staples’ print offerings went viral on social media back in February, thanks to a print and marketing department employee who created content during her shift. Online viewers quickly deemed her the “Staples Baddie.”
Party City filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy twice (in 2023 and 2024). In December 2024, it announced that it would close all of its stores and eliminate its staff after nearly 40 years in business. Employees were reportedly blindsided by the news; they lost all benefits and received no severance.
After the company’s initial filing cited $1.7 billion in debt, it cleared nearly $1 billion. The second filing led to the inevitable fall of the company; the remaining deficit of $800 million was just too much to overcome.
During a February 2025 bankruptcy auction, New Amscan PC (an affiliate of Ad Populum, the parent company behind Chia Pets and The Clapper) purchased Party City’s IP and assets for $20 million.
“As we take the new Party City to more places than ever before, finding the right partners is essential,” Ad Populum CEO Joel Weinshanker said in the initial partnership announcement. “Staples stood out immediately, not only for its national footprint, but for its strong connection to the communities we have both been part of for years. It felt like a natural fit from the start.”
Party City plans to keep expanding its Staples footprint throughout 2026. And it’s not the only former-brick-and-mortar household name to reopen in this shop-within-a-shop model. In April, Bed Bath & Beyond announced that it would be reopening in a new format “The Container Store + Bed Bath & Beyond,” as Inc. previously reported.
Only time will tell how this new type of partnership will serve these companies in the long term. However, for now, consumers can enjoy the brand they once loved at a familiar retailer.
—Victoria Salves, Editorial Fellow
This article originally appeared on Fast Company’s sister website, Inc.com.
Inc. is the voice of the American entrepreneur. We inspire, inform, and document the most fascinating people in business: the risk-takers, the innovators, and the ultra-driven go-getters that represent the most dynamic force in the American economy.