Painted Tree closes abruptly, surprising booth owners

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By Amanda Rogers

Mansfield Record

Vendors and shoppers at Mansfield’s Painted Tree Boutiques got an unhappy surprise Tuesday morning when the store unexpected closed.

Employees ushered shoppers out of the store at 1551 U.S. 287, while vendors were sent an email telling them that all 62 Painted Tree Boutiques across the country were closing and they needed to clear out their booths.

The small business owners who set up their booths in the large store were not happy, but many of them were not completely surprised, they said.

“They had so much stuff screwed up,” said Anne Deering, who had three Painted Tree booths selling seasonal décor in Mansfield, North Richland Hills and Grapevine. “They have not been paying vendors correctly. They started raising the rent and not telling people.”

Emily Rekieta, who was one of the first to sign a lease with Mansfield’s Painted Tree when it opened in 2019, said she also saw the red flags.

“They would send out weekly emails saying they were working on things, but things didn’t get any better,” said Rekieta, who sold women’s apparel. “It used to be great. They changed their payment system in October after they sold the company about a year ago.”

Joella Miller, who was also one of the original booth owners in Mansfield, said that Painted Tree was a great place for a long time.

“It’s so ironic, even through Covid they worked with us and didn’t charge us rent,” said Miller, who sold onesies, epoxy tumblers and t-shirts in her booth. “It was going great until last year. Sales were drastically down. Whoever they sold to jacked it all up. They started popping them up all over the country.”

The new company also raised her rent without informing her, from $270 per month to $309 per month, and had not been paying her all the money she was owed, Miller said.

“I didn’t get all my money from my December sales,” she said. “From my calculations, I should have had $900. I got a check for $52. After I sent in my fourth ticket, I got $200-$300 added to my account. I thought ‘well, we’re getting closer.’”

In addition to rent, the booth owners paid Painted Tree 10 percent of their sales. The company would issue checks at the end of the month to the vendors. In October, the process changed with owners turning in tickets for what they calculated that they were due.

The Tuesday morning email to vendors informed them that they have until April 24 to remove their items from the store, but most were not waiting.

“A lot of people are scrambling to get their stuff,” Miller said. “There’s a few in there that have a lot of stuff. I have a 72-inch fixture that I had to take down. Most of my stuff was just attached to the wall. People are having to take off work just in case they get locked out. It’s just ridiculous.

“A lot of these people were stay at home moms, women-owned businesses,” she said. “We were done dirty. I think the part that really chaps me was we paid rent four days ago.”

Robyn Leonard, who sells children’s clothing, had to take time off from her full-time job and get her father to help clean out her booth Wednesday. The single mother said she was worried about the vendors who do not live in the area.

“Some owners are out of state and drop ship their items to the store,” Leonard said. “They pay the employees to set up their stuff.”

Rekieta said she saw signs, but was surprised by the way it was handled.

“The employees had no idea until (Tuesday) either,” she said. “They got the same email we did, that they didn’t have a job anymore. They found out like the rest of us.

“They owe me money, they owe everybody money,” Rekieta said. “We paid for rent this month and they owe everybody deposits.”

The same scenario played out at all 62 Painted Tree locations after the sudden closure.

“We are heartbroken by this outcome," the company said in a statement.

"This decision has not come lightly, and it represents the end of a chapter that has meant everything to us," the statement read. "To our shoppers – you have made every single day worthwhile. You came to us not just to shop, but to discover, to support local makers, and to find something truly one-of-a-kind.

"To our dedicated team members – past and present – your commitment, creativity, and care have shaped everything we've accomplished. You showed up every day with kindness and purpose, and we are deeply thankful for every hour you gave to this community."

Painted Tree Boutiques started in Bryant, Arkansas, in 2015, and had grown to more than 60 locations, including 16 in Texas with six in the DFW area: Mansfield, Frisco, Highland Village, Lewisville, North Richland Hills and Grapevine.

Rekieta opened her own storefront business, Emily Grace Boutique, in January, so she has a place to go, but she is concerned about the other small business owners.

“I have had so many people reach out to me, but I don’t have the space,” she said. “My heart breaks for them because a lot of them this is how they pay their bills. We’ve invested thousands just getting those little booths together, inventory and painted.”

Miller turned in her 30-day notice last month, so she was already planning leaving Painted Tree.

“There’s nowhere to move,” she said. “Gracie Lane, a month ago I went there to scope them out. They have a waiting list a mile long. There’s no way. I don’t want to go into an antique mall, it’s just not the same.”