Porterville Blockbuster reaches end of reel

Say goodbye to Blockbuster nights.

The local video-rental store at 892 W. Henderson Ave. is closing its doors this spring.

The chain plans to close about 300 stores across the country this year, losing about 3,000 employees, according to the Associated Press.

“I cannot believe that they’re closing, it might just be economic or maybe all those Redboxes,” Porterville resident Patty Dumas said as she walked into the local store Monday.

“When I saw that [closing] sign I thought, God! Where are we going to go for movies?”

While store employees said it was against store policy to speak on the closure and directed all media inquiries to the company’s corporate headquarters, they said the store’s last day is April 7.

Everything in the store is on sale, from DVDs to fixtures, furniture, and equipment. It is no longer renting movies nor video-games.

Two local Blockbuster Expresses — DVD-rental kiosks — located in Porterville Plaza and Porter Plaza on Henderson Avenue, have been closed for a while, according to a store employee.

In 2011, the Dish Network bought then-bankrupt Blockbuster for $320 million. Dish Network last year also shuttered about 500 underperforming Blockbuster locations. Spokesman John Hall says the stores that will be closed in coming weeks are either underperforming or nearing the end of their leases, the Associated Press reported.

The Associated Press says that Blockbuster, founded in 1985, used to be a dominant retailer but has struggled as video-on-demand and video streaming services have become popular.

Dumas, who said she’s a ‘movie person’ and said she used to be a Blockbuster cardholder but now only purchases previously watched DVDs, said she holds an account with Netflix — an on-demand video streaming company.

“I use Netflix at home, but my grandchildren use it way more,” she said.  

Contact Denise Madrid at 784-5000, Ext. 1047. Follow her on Twitter @DeniseMadrid_.