Say goodbye to Bon-Ton: Pa. stores are now closed
The Bon-Ton Stores have now closed, after a winning bid went to liquidators at auction on April 17, 2018. (Sean Heisey/The York Daily Record)
It’s the end of an era.
On Wednesday, several Pennsylvania Bon-Ton stores closed their doors for the last time, including locations in Harrisburg, Camp Hill, York, Lancaster and Hanover.
Scott Carpenter, president of Retail Solutions at Great American Group, said this means that all Pennsylvania locations are officially closed.
“Clean up and fixture removal will take place today and tomorrow,” Carpenter wrote in an email Thursday. “We will be out of all buildings by the end of the day Aug. 31.
The old downtown Bon-Ton Department store stood at West Market and North Beaver in York, Pa. It was quite a place in its day, the epicenter of the mid-20th-century holiday shopping season’s opening festivities. Today, York County offices fill the renovated structure. (York Daily Record file)
This doesn’t come as a surprise, though. Earlier this year, it became public knowledge that Bon-Ton Stores Inc. was in trouble financially. The company began to close stores and filed for bankruptcy.
The Great American Group and Tiger Capitol Group purchased the chain for $775.5 million back in April, giving some employees and longtime patrons hope for a rebirth.
But instead, they announced they would liquidate the company, close 212 of its stores, and sell off remaining inventory.
The Bon-Ton was among America’s largest department store chains, operating 256 stores in 23 states across the country.
In a statement, Bon-Ton president and CEO Bill Tracy said, “While we are disappointed by this outcome and tried very hard to identify bidders interested in operating the business as a going concern, we are committed to working constructively with the winning bidder to ensure an orderly wind-down of operations that minimizes the impact of this development on our associates, customers, vendors and the communities we serve.
“We are incredibly grateful to all of our associates for their dedicated service to Bon-Ton and to our millions of loyal customers who we have had the pleasure to serve as their hometown store for more than 160 years.”
This story comes to us through a partnership between WITF and The York Daily Record.
Sometimes, your mornings are just too busy to catch the news beyond a headline or two. Don’t worry. The Morning Agenda has got your back. Each weekday morning, host Tim Lambert will keep you informed, amused, enlightened and up-to-date on what’s happening in central Pennsylvania and the rest of this great commonwealth.
