A department store once though long dead has delayed its alleged comeback in 2016.
Amesstores.com has a message on it that says, “Silver Knight Group, Inc, the parent company of Ames Department Stores, Inc, has released a new reopening date.”
The message says brick & mortar stores will begin opening in June 2026 with 35 openings planned through April 2027.
Started in Southbridge, Massachusetts in 1958, Ames went out of business in 2022.
Many blamed the liquidation on the rise of Walmart.
22 stores were operating in southwestern Pennsylvania, including locations in Butler, Cranberry, Robinson Township, Irwin, McKeesport and other areas, employing nearly 1,000 people when the chain went out of business.
No other details are available at this time.
Department stores like Ames and Hills have a special place in the memory of many around Pittsburgh.
If Ames is coming back, it will make some shoppers happy, but it’s possible the announcement may not be legit.
Bloomberg says Silver Knight Group invests mainly in bars and nightclubs, something that Ames is not.
Some former Ames employees share memories on a Facebook page called Ames Stores Alumni.