SAN ANTONIO – Nearly 300 small business owners are scrambling after the abrupt closure of Painted Tree Boutiques left vendors without answers about their companies and potential earnings.
Painted Tree Boutiques announced that it would be closing all locations across the nation on Tuesday.
Vendors at the marketplace in San Antonio said they received an email Tuesday informing them the store would shut down effective immediately and that they needed to dismantle their shops.
“We are all feeling a rollercoaster of emotions,” said Erika Montes, a vendor at the market.
For Montes and others like Angel Contero, the closure is more than a temporary setback. Many are now trying to determine their next steps while facing uncertainty about their finances.
“Just seeing everybody’s dreams, just like pop, it’s just a very weird feeling,” Contero said.
According to vendors, the email announcing the shutdown did not address whether they would receive money from recent sales. The company also posted on social media that the closure came as a shock to employees.
“Nobody knows about funds. Nobody knows if we’re getting paid. Nobody knows that we’re going to get deposits back, if we are going to be charged rent or anything like that,” said Contero, who owns Que Bonita Crafts.
Inside Painted Tree Boutiques, vendors rented retail space, often investing their savings, time and creativity into their businesses.
Since the closure, many business owners have turned to social media to update videos for customers and encourage them to continue supporting their brands as they search for new locations.
“I’m just trying to figure it all out, trying to figure out first where to store this and then next. I don’t know where I’ll be,” said Montes, who runs Lotus Craft Company. “Everybody does not know what the future holds.”
Despite the uncertainty, vendors say community support has been strong. Some San Antonio businesses have offered free space to help displaced sellers continue operating.
“Luckily, I’ve been inundated with messages from local businesses, allowing me to set up for free, no cost, outside the shops and things like that,” Contero said.
Attempts to reach Painted Tree Boutiques for comment, including questions about whether vendors will receive payment for recent sales, were unsuccessful.
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