The Rise And Fall Of Pier 1

Former employee here, the store was way overpriced for the quality.

At the end of the day, the merchandise was just too expensive for middle class consumers to justify buying. 40+ years of stagnant wages and rising cost of living will do that.

Even their “sale” prices are still overpriced

This store was so expensive when the same things were cheaper at Homegoods. Absolutely no reason to shop at pier 1

Everytime I walked in there I walked out without purchasing anything, too dang expensive!

All of the Pier 1 stores in my area are located near HomeGoods or Marshall’s/TJ Maxx stores.
Who wants to buy a repurposed $30 pine cone Christmas ornament, a $44 picture frame, or a set of $75 napkin rings?
No thanks, I’ll go next door to Homegoods and get a cart full 🛒
Pier 1 stores were always stuffed with fragile/out-dated/over-priced merchandise. They were a perfect example of a business not adapting to changes in the market, and I’m surprised they lasted as long as they did.

I always loved the smell of Pier 1 when I went there. I bought furniture there that I still have. Most comfortable sofa I've ever owned.

They were so overpriced I'm surprised they lasted as long as they did.

Pier Imports, Forever 21, Toys R Us, Sears, Good Year, GM, Circuit City, Block Busters, Kodak, Aeropostale and the list goes on and on... all part of the 2000's lifestyle are almost dead.

I loved Pier one ❤️ mainly plates, candles, and holiday ordiments

Selling Overpriced Garbage was the problem. No other reason. Bottom Line!

They were overpriced and that’s a downfall.

Their biggest issue was not keeping up with current trends and styles. Yes, the inventory was overpriced but also outdated and somewhat depressing.

Who wants to pay $99 for a small lamp like wtf pier 1, it ain’t make out of diamonds

A lot of people don't know but Pier One actually sold by special order very good quality but environmentally destructive hand made solid teak and mahogany furniture from Indonesia. The prices were very good. Only problem was the shipping was 3 months long from Indonesia to the store and putting solid wood furniture in plain card board boxes meant it often arrived damaged. You could buy a solid mahogany dresser from them in 2009 for $1500 that would cost you $3,000 to $4,000 at other places.

CNBC showed IKEA like 20 times in this video but never mentioned them.

Marshall’s, Homegoods & Amazon are the downfall of Pier1!

I worked there briefly as a designer in the mid 90’s. It was a fun job but the company headquarter was badly managed by the all male executives. Their refusals to fresh perspectives and changing the business model, were the reasons why they failed. Pier1 Imports was a pioneer of the home decors industry but sadly, the inability to adopt the market and consumers needs lead to their downfall.

I shopped Pier 1 in Boston center in 1970. Great store for a long time. Mismanagement took over years later.

I miss Blockbuster. Going to get a movie with your honey was an heck of an experience!

items were too expensive

From my some 16 years as an adult, I can count probably on one hand the number of times I went into a Pier 1. And the number of times I walked out and thought, that's neat but I'm not paying this much for these things, would be the same.

When your charging $16 for air freshener, expect the inevitable

Pier 1 was too expensive. I liked how their stuff looked, but never bought it from the store. Always bought it used on places like letgo or Facebook marketplace for a 3rd of the original cost.

I walked in for a clearance sale, and the price for 1 single chair was about $600. *On clearance!* I walked around a little bit, just about everything looked cheap and overpriced.

I remember going there with my sister in the 80's after she first got her driver's license. We got cheap fun imports like ginger candy, bamboo fans, and paper parasols.

It is an honor to have lived one town over from the very first Pier 1 store that opened fifty years ago. I loved the style and colors of their products that have added a lot of beauty and comfort to my life.

Sad to see Pier 1 closing. For many years, it was my favorite home furnishing store and I will miss them.

Their fall does not have anything to do with the pandemic, only their greed...🔺🔺🔺

I'm surprised it was considered a store for old people. I loved it in my twenties, it was just way too expensive for me but I loved their style.

It was fun to look around with the family if you’re walking in a shipping center and want to quickly pop-in to see if there were sales, but I actually BOUGHT stuff from Home Goods!

They asked for way too much money for particle board stuff.

Pier 1 should’ve made a deal with Wayfair. That would have solved the online problem.

It’s too expensive for things I can get half price in Home goods or IKEA even in Amazon

It’s pretty simple, if you want any store to be a success, make the items affordable to everyone.

Former employee when I was 20. The manager told me that if I wasn’t on an actual vacation he would not grant me my paid vacation days. He said staycations were not vacation. I swore when I grew up and had my own money I would never give them a dollar. I think the way they treated employees could also have been part of their downfall.

Our store was over stocked. I worried that I would knock over a display of glass and cause a cascade of merch falling and crashing.

I worked there until the end. It’s such cheap stuff and the furniture I built even gave me allergic reactions. This entire video is super accurate to what I saw as the major problems of the business (even as an 19 yr old I could see it’s failure coming)

Former employee of 4 years... I can honestly say the furniture was really good quality so if you had the money you got something that was gonna last however most people couldn’t afford it so what would happen is ppl came in to see our nice ass displays, take pictures, and recreate them between HomeGoods, Ross, Amazon, etc. so I knew at some point it was gonna go out of business. But I’m gonna miss working there, lord knows my interior design eye got good af from helping people decorate & building those complicated ass displays 😅❤️❤️

I actually really liked their style. Just couldn't afford them, or that idea just stayed with me and never looked at the place for anything.

I love this store. Sure going to miss it.

I used to LOVE Pier1. They used to have beautiful Italian dinner ware that I've used for years and are still fantastic. It all turned into over-colored melamine crap. No wonder they ended up out of business.

Okay, now you guys are just straight up copying TheCompanyMan

Yes, the prices were outrageous. Considering the fact that I lived right next to Homegoods and TJ MAXX, I had no reason to spend that much money on home decor.
HOWEVER... the closing sale was everything, I was finally able to afford my dream dining table!

Yo Company Man they stealing yo Titles ma boy 😂

Dying businesses are dying.

Along with CostPlus, they were truly innovators of their time.

The perfect storm: coronavirus and overpricing due to greed.
That will do it every time.

This company overall failed to keep up with competitors new designs and prices

Loved Pier 1. Sorry it had to close. Professor Posen is such a cheerful chap. The sadness of a business that failed doesn't go so well with his cheerful self, although he is very likable. All the best to those who worked for Pier 1.

In the 90’s you could find cute stuff for a good price. They got greedy and raised prices and brought in more generic products. I loved the candles but they became over priced too. Just wasn’t fun to go and treasure hunt any more.

No one that's still open can compare to Pier1. Their pieces were unique. Walmart, Marshalls, & Target definitely can't compare to Pier1, that's for sure. That was one credit card that I loved. Maybe Home Goods can compete with them a little.

Why executives still getting pay the highest? Time after time like Pier 1 proofed many executives have skills to run a business. All they do just cutting lower end labors to make its company looks like they have increased sales.

It was an overpriced store for grandmas to buy chinese made new england style sailing americana.. weak store, always was

*I NEVER liked Pier 1 Imports.*
They were incredibly overpriced for what they sold. I don’t mean just a little. I have no love lost.

I visited the store twice and didn’t buy anything. Poor quality, too colorful for my taste, and the price is exorbitant. Staff wasn’t helpful and merchandise was everywhere.

My mom LOVED this store.

I expect more rise and falls.

I shopped Pier 1 for decades. As a business owner (4), Pier 1 NEVER adjusted with changing times. That's the main reason every business fails.

Il miss the hunt 😢😢 pier 1 was my retail therapy. I needed a fix every few weeks.

We had Pier 1 in Canada and I never shopped there for home goods because they were too damn expensive. The video glossed over this fact but I think it was a huge part of there downfall. For home goods I typically shop at thrift stores and Home Sense/Winners/Marshalls, where I get beautiful products at the right price.

Some of the comments on here are hysterical, they are so off base. I worked for Pier 1 for 6 years right up until it closed. Many complaints have been about price, but when Pier 1 cleared product, it was always cheaper than just about any other store. What we as employees noticed was the quality of the product started to fade, particularly furniture, much of it arriving damaged and unsellable. Pier 1 also did very little to diversify it's product lines. How many dinner plates and pillows can one person own? Why it didn't try to bring in unique lines of products like it used to have when it was known for its import bazaar style product, is a total mystery. They became victims of their own inability to address shifting market trends and placing the emphasis on products that people would become excited about, particular new and exciting furniture lines.

this was my favorite store in the late 80’s and early 90’s. everyone had that round wicker chair in their first apartment and they sold really beautiful scarves and sandals from india.
as I got older I continued to like the summer furniture they sold ( late 90’s-2004) the last time I went in a store was 2018 and everything was different, spendy and had lost the “import” part of their brand.
I did buy a cookie jar.
on sale.

I used to like them because they had interesting items but yes they were overpriced. I still have some of their pieces.

I loved shopping here in the 90s, so unique and different until about 10 to 15 years ago. They went commercial and that I think really was the downfall. So sad, I still have a few beautiful unique finds I will always treasure. Goodbye Pier One

I really miss Pier 1. Thanks for the information

Heck, I used to love Pier 1 - it had colorful, fun items from all over the world and was perfect for outfitting my first few apartments as a young adult in the early 80s. Paper lanterns and papasan chairs from Vietnam, strange condiments from all over the place, handwoven table linens and bedspreads from South America, broomstick skirts and copper jewelry from India, lots of bamboo and carved figurines. Then they got cocky and started selling horrendously overpriced home dec- $400 for a patio chair? $10 for one fabric napkin? $25 for a small scented candle? They lost my business a decade ago, and I was always surprised to see their stores open at all.

Damnnn. They said pier one customers were yuppies 😂😂

You can’t just keep selling crap to consumers - sooner or later, they wise up to the scam !!

I worked at a Pier 1 for a time, yes it was over priced but there where loyal customers who didn't care about that. I was one of them. People can spend their money the way they want to and were they want to. I'm sad it's gone.

They were too expensive! Just realized that many other people had the same thought.

That funny i had set of papsan chairs for 20 years they look great

So basically they were not customer focused, failed to catch on with the moving trend and charged too much. Oh and no e-commerce. Basically every wheel fell off...

My last day is this Wednesday (9/23) 😢💔

one my favorite decorating store.

Holy cow they were still open. I thought they went out when Circuit City and all those other stores went out of business.

I loved pier 1 and I’ve been in their store tons of times, however I’ve only ever made two purchases
2 Christmas pillows
And two wicker patio chairs with seat cushions.
I did pay a lot for the chairs but I really liked them and liked the sand color. Most wicker chairs are brown or white but these were the perfect color. but I didn’t buy them to use them outdoors. I bought them for inside my house
Sunset pier parchment was the one I think I got. They were definitely worth what I paid

The one and only time i went to Pier 1 I bought a papa son chair about a 1 1/2 months ago before it closed. It my favorite chair, nobody sits in it.

That Hart Posen guy’s style of talking is like intro to a spooky story 🎃👹🙀

I haven't been to Pier 1 in years and my whole life, I stepped into a Pier 1 store ONCE.

7:24 What about Ikea? They must have a decent market share.

Ok so they are going under then? I saw a store listed as closing out sale. Part of the issue I think they hit is only so many decorations you can have. They had some good stuff but I found a lot cheap and not appealing. Unfortunately with At Home and Hobby Lobby you can get a good full of options. Pier One stores tended to be compact and hard to browse. Again though only so much you can buy before space fills up. I didn’t see the great value on product claimed here. Though random cool items thought. Having to many stores likely clogged up distribution supply.

When will we see "The Rise and Fall" video of CNBC ??

Who else misses Pier 1?🙋🏾‍♀️

Online is one problem. Good work on the video.

I loved walking around looking at everything, but it was far too expensive and I could never justify buying anything

They had some bargains in the 1970s. I bought some giant pencils for 5 cents each, re-sold them for 25 cents each. Really enjoyed malls in the 70s too, but I've been buying nearly 100% of my shopping online for several years now.

I loved their aesthetic and brought quite a bit when I moved into my new place. But in recent years, I found that I could not purchase at their price range, when other stores had the same aesthetic for less.

What I like about stores closing down is all the killer savings that’s near the end getting stuff that’s overpriced at regular Walmart value.

I've walked into Pier 1 one time, and that's the last time I've ever been there. Too dang expensive for my taste. Lol

He was talkin about locations, I immediately thought of the Fairfield Ca store.
Not terrible. Decent building,right off I80,in between a BevMo and a Meineke,(former Fairfield Nissan) they were sole occupants of the building,the"right side" of town.
Its even been there for,I dunno 30 yrs if its still there. Still never been inside.
We have a store in Fremont, but I bet that'll close soon.

loved the store till the bitter end. used to go there every time i visited the city. never bought big things too often but alot of candles and small decorator items. maybe i was the problem lol

it was pricey but they had fun and fresh stuff. i still have a vase and a fish art statue i bought 20 years ago for my 1st apartment

I only stepped into a Pier 1 store once. I haven't been there in years

When I was in my ‘20s (late ‘80s/early ‘90s), it was the place you went to furnish your first apartment. Then they tried to go "upscale" it in the 2000s, it got too expensive. IKEA filled that gap.

Sweet, new Company Man video!

6:07 only good thing that Edgewater location had going was being next to The Original Pancake House.

Very sad they're closing down😣💔most of all, I will miss their Rustic Woodlands candles!

I personally think when the trouble began pier 1 should have leaned into their unique merchandise. They could have closed stores in odd locations and made it more of a destination. The commercials they launched " find what speaks to you" were successful in bringing new customers in. They would often say they had never been to a Pier 1 before and ask for the item featured in the commercial.I was a Canadian Assistant manager for them since 2000 and witnessed many of the bad decisions that made things worse. Associates, Managers and staff at the store level had some amazing creative ideas and honest opinions about Pier 1's competition and what was expected from an online brand but the upper management/corporate never reached out or provided a platform for those ideas. There was a disconnect between what a new customer not a regular die hard customer really expected online and in store. Those frontline workers could have really helped. I will always have fond memories of wonderful loyal regular customers and amazing coworkers . So Sad it's gone. Hopefully the company who bought the intellectual property will be able to give the brand new life online.

Waiting for Ikea to go out. Hate that maze of a place.