Barnes & Noble, Pier 1 Imports Closing In Braintree

BRAINTREE, MA — Barnes & Noble and Pier 1 Imports, both on Granite Street, announced they will close their Braintree stores. The last day for the book store is Saturday, company management posted on a sign outside the store. It wasn't immediately clear when furniture store Pier 1 will close.

Barnes & Noble has been in business in Braintree for 26 years. The store is closing after failing to come to an agreement on a new lease with property owner W.P. Carey.

Company mangement said employees will be offered jobs at other locations. The closest stores to Braintree are in Hingham and Walpole.

On the sign posted outside the store, the company thanked local shoppers for their loyalty.

"We have really enjoyed serving the Braintree community for the past 26 years and appreciate your loyalty ..." the sign read. "Barnes & Noble is opening new locations nationwide, and we will continue to look in the Braintree area for new locations."

Pier 1 Imports parent company announced Monday it was filing for bankruptcy, and the Braintree location is one of 450 stores closing nationwide. Another South Shore store among the closures was Plymouth, the Patriot Ledger reported.

"We have worked to establish an apporpiately sized and profitable store footprint, operating structure and merchandise assortment," CEO Robert Riesbeck told the Patriot Ledger. "Today's actions are intended to provide Pier 1 with additional time and financial flexibility as we now work to unlock additional value for our stakeholders through a sale of the company."

The Braintree Pier 1 announced it's having a final sake with discounts as high as 50 percent off on some merchandise.