Trexlertown Blockbuster Is Lone Survivor

The Trexlertown Blockbuster video store is the lone survivor in the Lehigh Valley, according to The Morning Call.

It is the second time the store, located at 7150 Hamilton Blvd, has avoided closing. Earlier this year, the store was spared when the company already closed hundreds of stores this year including some in the Lehigh Valley.

In September, the company closed all its stores in Canada, too.

According to reports, the stores will stop renting videos Dec. 26, and then have a liquidation sale. The stores will close by mid-February.

Once the dominant movie rental company in the U.S., Blockbuster Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2010 and was sold at auction to Dish Network Corp. earlier this year.

Blockbuster had 3,300 U.S. stores, about 25,500 employees, including 7,500 full-time workers. Now it’s down to about 1,500 stores.

On Tuesday, a Dish Network spokesman said physical stores remain important even as the company expands its video streaming services.

Movie rentals took a huge hit with the rise of mail-in services and web-based video such as Netflix, and rental machines such as Redbox.