(Updated at 2:15 p.m.) Greeting card and stationery store Papyrus is expected to close soon at the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City, the latest victim of a brutal business environment for bricks-and-mortar retailers.
The parent company of Papyrus is closing all of its more than 250 stores, news outlets reported last week, and a liquidation firm has been hired to help the chain sell off its remaining merchandise. It’s unclear when exactly the stores will close.
A 20% off sign could be seen in the Pentagon City store Tuesday afternoon.
The closure comes as Amazon, the biggest force behind shoppers shifting their spending from physical stores to e-commerce, moves into its second headquarters a few blocks away.
Greeting card shops are something of an endangered species, particularly in Arlington. A Hallmark store closed at Pentagon Row in 2012. Among greeting card purveyors that are still open, recent Ballston Quarter arrival Steadfast Supply has greeting cards and stationery, while a Hallmark store in Alexandria, near Fairlington, remains in business (despite this incident in 2016).
