Alin Party Superstore, a 47-year fixture in Riverside’s Magnolia Center neighborhood, is preparing to close.
“They’re not renewing our lease,” Store Manager Ginger Rodriguez said Thursday, May 2.
Rodriguez, who has worked at the store for 28 years, said it will close toward the end of June, but its second location in Lakewood will remain open.
The company, originally Alin Paper Co., was founded by Nila Saylor in 1971 and focused more on office supplies. The name “Alin” came from spelling “Nila” backward.
Its Riverside location first opened in 1977. Before moving to its current home in a former Thrifty’s on Magnolia Avenue near the Riverside Plaza, Alin was inside what was then called Hardman Center, an Arlington Avenue shopping center across the street from the now-closed Sears.
Alin became known for its huge selections of Halloween costumes and party supplies from paper plates to piñatas. The the two locations average 25,000 square feet and 70,000 items, the company website states.
A Facebook post about the store’s closure attracted more than 800 comments in two days, with many expressing sadness and describing fond memories of shopping there.
“My kids always looked forward to going there when they were little,” Annie Peterson Falck wrote. “I would take them before their birthday parties and they would pick out all the decorations.”
Commenters recalled buying everything from wedding invitations to Halloween costumes at Alin, and more than one person said the store gave them their first job.
“No party supply store compares to Alin Party Supply,” wrote Catherine LeoGrande. “I come all the way from Highland even when there is a Party City down the street from me. This makes me so sad.”
