Pier 1 Imports, which announced last week it plans to close up to 450 of its 942 stores, is closing its Riverhead location.
The store, located in the Riverhead Centre shopping plaza on Old Country Road, has begun clearance sales of all its inventory. While no firm closing date has been set, the store will likely be shuttered within a couple of months, according to employees. All sales are final and the store will not be receiving any new inventory. The Riverhead location has already been removed from the company website.
The company reported a decrease in sales of more than 11% and a net loss of $59 million for its third fiscal quarter, which ended Nov. 30. That followed a $100.5 million second-quarter loss.
In a Jan. 6 press release announcing third quarter results, the company said it would close up to 450 stores as well as some distribution centers. It did not disclose locations of the stores that would be closed.
“Although decisions that impact our associates are never easy, reducing the number of our brick-and-mortar locations is a necessary business decision,” Pier 1 CEO and chief fiscal officer Robert Riesbeck said in the press release. “We thank our team of hard-working associates for their commitment to Pier 1 and to serving our customers.”
Pier 1 has been the only tenant to occupy the freestanding building opposite another freestanding store currently occupied by footwear retailer DSW. Borders Books and Music was the original tenant in that building. Borders filed for bankruptcy and closed its remaining 399 stores in 2011.
The 400,000-square foot shopping center, situated on a 50-acre site at the intersection of Route 58 and Mill Road, was completed in 2004. In addition to Borders, Riverhead Centre has lost several original tenants: Linens n’ Things, Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, Waldbaum’s, Lane Bryant, Modell’s Sporting Goods, and Boulder Creek Restaurant. All but Lane Bryant have been replaced by new tenants, respectively: Bed Bath and Beyond, Chase Bank, ShopRite and Ashley Furniture. The restaurant pad has been leased twice since Boulder Creek closed. A Joe’s Crab Shack opened there in 2013 and closed in 2016. The current tenant, IHOP, opened in 2018.
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