abandoned party supply company

by Kaylah Stroup

Whenever Jesi comes to Cleveland to hang out I always rack my brain to think of awesome places to take her. This city has no shortage of abandoned buildings but I want to take her places that will just wow her. The abandoned “rubber duck factory” was a hit and something that I felt would be super hard to top. My only real idea for our adventure was a building formerly home to a company that supplied window displays for large companies, and rented decorations for parties. The company closed in 2009 after nearly 80 years in business. The internet boom basically killed the need for a place like this, people can now order these things from the comfort of their own home instead of buying locally.

Before closing the company held a liquidation sale but clearly they weren’t able to get rid of everything. This building is chock-full of left over decorations. There are three floors, not including the basement, that are just absolutely packed with things. The floors seem to be somewhat organized by holiday or theme. The top level is Christmas. There are boxes upon boxes, still unopened, of tinsel, ornaments, even trees!

The second floor seems to have a lot of craft supplies. Massive bolts of now moldy fabric, and fake flowers litter the floor. Two large cutting tables sit on one side of the room. Shelving units now hold a few random bottles and an empty pack of cigarettes, signs others come here to a have their own party.
Sometime after closing a portion of the building caught fire. That and some pretty extensive water damage make the floors on one whole side of the building pretty dangerous to traverse across. Despite the fact this was my third time inside the building I still haven’t covered a lot of ground simply because it’s not worth the risk of falling through the floor. There are also lots of really really dark areas in the building, which I don’t venture into either. What can I say? When it comes right down to it, I’m a huge weenie. 
Even excluding those huge portions of the building I may never see, it’s incredible the wide range of things there are to discover. I understand that a lot of times it’s easier just to leave things behind especially in a situation like this where your business goes belly up but this just seems like such a huge waste. I can’t even imagine how much money worth of merchandise is still in this building, the great majority of it non-salvageable now.


My very first visit to this building was late at night during a storm. The rain was just pouring into the building like there was no roof at all. Even though it’s been abandoned for a while now but I can’t imagine it’ll stay up much longer. Ohio weather is rough on structures that have no one left to fend for them. Although I say it in nearly every abandoned post, I do look forward to visiting this building again in the future to see how it decays.
xoxo

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21 comments

B June 11, 2015 - 2:00 pm

This place looks super creepy!

Kaylah June 20, 2015 - 2:09 pm

Meh, it's not too bad (in the light!) 😛

julia June 11, 2015 - 2:11 pm

crazy how much stuff has been left there! i'm sure it's fun exploring all of it 🙂

Kaylah June 20, 2015 - 2:10 pm

Definitely! It's kind of hard to resist going through all the boxes!

Kayly Nyman June 11, 2015 - 6:34 pm

I think it's amazing how things just end up left there. Provides such an eerie yet intriguing atmosphere. Though I can't help wondering why the owners or employees didn't take more with them when it went under? Definitely a waste. And I think I would certainly be creeped out in the dark parts as well!

Kaylah June 20, 2015 - 2:10 pm

Right? Like after it didn't sell at auction why did no one just take it or offer it to someone who might want it? So strange!

Eleigh Llaneras June 11, 2015 - 8:00 pm

I wonder if any crafter got in and took some goodies from this place. lol
Seems like a really cool place to visit. 🙂

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Kaylah June 20, 2015 - 2:11 pm

I doubt it. The building was sealed for a long time when it finally opened up I'm sure everything was too water damaged to be useful.

Sarah Albertson June 12, 2015 - 12:16 am

Oooh I am drooling over all the old Christmas stuff! This seems like an amazingly eerie place to explore. I can't imagine how creepy it would be a night.

Kaylah June 20, 2015 - 2:12 pm

There is SO much Christmas stuff!!!

Roli June 12, 2015 - 6:39 am

This is amazing and your photos are great! I love abandoned places.

Kaylah June 20, 2015 - 2:12 pm

Thanks, Roli! 🙂

L'Oursonne June 12, 2015 - 8:30 am

It seems to be a dream place! You must want to open all the boxes, search everywhere treasure in a place like this! What a chance to know this building!

Kaylah June 20, 2015 - 2:13 pm

Of course! It's crazy how many unopened boxes there are.

Mary Lucas June 12, 2015 - 9:11 am

Stunning. The photos with the Christmas tree and the box of flowers are just perfection. Love these posts x

Kaylah June 20, 2015 - 2:13 pm

Thank you!

Ciara June 12, 2015 - 1:10 pm

When I was a kid there was an old abandoned boat shed down by the pier. It was absolutely huge. They used to pull the ships inside to repair them. Me and my friends would regularly run around inside along rickety old walkways and staircases, playing with old rusty chains and tools! It was dangerous to be fair but to a bunch of kids it was bloody magical. And not a one of us ever got injured or hurt there miraculously. Abandoned places are just so interesting aren't they.

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Kaylah June 20, 2015 - 2:14 pm

That sounds awesome!

Hey, you don't have to be a kid to think it sounds magical! Some of the places I visit, like the greenhouse, make you just feel like you're in a dream world.

The Tote Trove June 14, 2015 - 12:51 am

I'll never look at an abandoned building the same way again! And you're certainly not a weenie if you visited this place late at night during a storm 🙂

Kaylah June 20, 2015 - 2:14 pm

Heh, glad to hear that! It's amazing what gets left behind.

Elif June 19, 2015 - 8:59 pm

This is insane! Why would they leave all this behind? 🙁

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