An anchor store that just last week appeared to be staying at Phillipsburg Mall now has announced a March closure.
Black Rose Antiques & Collectibles told customers it plans to close by the end of March at the soon-to-be defunct mall, bordering Lopatcong and Pohatcong townships. A sign by the cash register read there are no plans for the business to relocate at this time but stay tuned on Black Rose’s social media pages for any future steps.
The sign asked patrons to be patient during the transition period and thanked them for three years of patronage. The shop opened in January 2017 in the mall; there are two other locations at shopping malls in Chambersburg, Franklin County and Hanover, York County.
“Please bear with us as this news was as much a surprise to us as it was to you,” the sign read. “We will be extremely busy over the next several months as we wind down operations. Our goal is to continue to give the best customer service possible but there may be long wait times at checkout and showcase service.”
The anchor store is known for its eclectic mix of whozits and whatzits. Ralph Basile, the general manager of all three locations, said Monday customers were always drawn to the treasure hunt and for some, it was the nostalgia of finding items from their childhood. At any given day, more than 100 vendors would lay their wares out before them.
The shop was always successful financially when other Phillipsburg Mall tenants weren’t as fortunate, Basile said. Gold’s Gym in late September closed its doors after telling patrons on the business’ Facebook page the gym was out of money and had been for a long time.
“We had a good following here,” Basile said. “We’ve had some customers almost in tears. This was there go-to place. Some faces we saw every week. This was their routine."
Basile expected some deep discounts would be coming once the store got closer to March. Currently, some vendors have slashed some merchandise as low as 90% off original prices.
Basile said he learned about Black Rose’s closure from the chain’s parent company in December around the same time other mall tenants received a letter from Shaun Kashanian, the attorney representing Phillipsburg Mall, asking them to terminate their licensing agreement. Several smaller tenants were asked to vacate within 30 days of the Dec. 23 letter.
About 10 Black Rose Antiques & Collectibles employees at the Phillipsburg Mall made other job or future plans after hearing the news, Basile said.
The mall’s other anchor stores, The Bon-Ton and Sears, have since been torn down. A Kohl’s department store for now remains with the future of the Phillipsburg Mall property unclear.
The Long Island partnership of Namdar Realty Group and Mason Asset Management bought the Phillipsburg Mall property in 2013 for $11.5 million with an intention to upgrade the shopping destination, which by that point was already dealing with empty storefronts. As of Monday, a rendering on the company’s website shows just Kohl’s and Black Rose Antiques & Collectibles as remaining anchor tenants. Some other smaller retailers this week in operation at the mall included Sport Collectibles, Bath & Body Works, Verizon and Asian Gifts.
No one from the partnership has returned lehighvalleylive.com’s repeated requests for information for almost two years.
Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @pamholzmann. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
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