Christmas Tree Shops filing for bankruptcy, according to reports
Published May 5, 2023
MIDDLEBOROUGH — Christmas Tree Shops, a Massachusetts-based business that has existed for more than 50 years, is reportedly preparing to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
The Wall Street Journal reports that the bankruptcy filing could happen as soon as this weekend. Citing people familiar with the matter, the WSJ said the company has hired Boston law firm Murphy & King to prepare for the potential filing.
Christmas Tree Shops, which has a warehouse in Middleborough, is a discount home goods chain that heavily marketed its slogan: "Don't you just love a bargain?"
Christmas Tree Shops started on Cape Cod
The company's early roots go back to the 1950s as a summertime Christmas gift shop on Cape Cod known as "The Christmas Tree Gift Shop," according to Good Housekeeping. Unlike most holiday stores, Mark and Alice Matthews operated their Yarmouth Port shop from May through October — when vacationers flock to the Cape.
When did Christmas Tree Shops open?
Christmas Tree Shops had its true beginning in 1970, when Chuck and Doreen Bilezikian bought the business and moved their family into the apartment above it. The Bilezikians decided to eventually expand the store beyond Christmas ornaments and gifts, and began stocking summer vacation items like beach towels and sunscreen.
The official name of the retail chain is plural because the original location was made up of a trio of buildings: the Front Shop, the Back Shop and the Barn Shop, the latter of which primarily sold penny candy.
Where are Christmas Tree Shops located?
Most Christmas Tree Shops stores in New England are in buildings that resemble Colonial, Victorian or even Old English barn style. Other locations have distinct features, such as the Lynnfield store's lighthouse and the windmill at the store situated at the base of the Sagamore Bridge. In the SouthCoast, there's a store in Dartmouth.
Who owns Christmas Tree Shops?
In 2003, Bed Bath & Beyond — which itself filed for bankruptcy protection on April 23 — bought Christmas Tree Shops for $200 million and expanded the regional retailer. There are currently 83 locations throughout the eastern United States.
Bed Bath & Beyond then sold Christmas Tree Shops to Handhil Holdings LLC, a private company, in November 2020 for an undisclosed amount of money.
Handhil Holdings then updated the store's brand logo to prominently feature "CTS" in 2022 as part of an effort to clear up the misconception that the business sells more than just Christmas-themed goods.
According to the store's website, there are currently 15 Christmas Tree Shops locations in Massachusetts, including five on Cape Cod: Avon, Falmouth, Foxborough, Holyoke, Hyannis, Lynnfield, Natick, North Attleborough, North Dartmouth, Orleans, Pembroke, Sagamore, Shrewsbury, Somerville and West Dennis.
The original shops owned by the Bilezikians on Route 6A in Yarmouth Port closed in January 2007, but the site is now occupied by stores owned by the couple's son, Greg.
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