Digital shopping network HSN is leaving St. Petersburg after nearly 50 years.
HSN's headquarters, located off Roosevelt Boulevard in the Gateway area, will close within months and relocate with sister network QVC to West Chester, Pennsylvania, home of their parent company, Qurate Retail.
The 107,000-square-foot campus employed as many as 2,500 people as recently as 2018, before Qurate laid off several hundred workers in two rounds of layoffs in 2018 and 2023, the Tampa Bay Times reported.
It's unknown how many people will lose their jobs or be relocated.
The layoffs occurred as Qurate has been working its way through financial difficulties in recent years amid declining sales, net losses and increasing debt. The company reported a net loss of $23 million for the third quarter of 2024.
In a news release, Qurate said the consolidation is part of a shift to "live social shopping company" under the rebrand of QVC Group. However, HSN and QVC will still operate as separate brands.
“As we focus on our growth strategy to lean further into social and streaming, we are redefining who we are as a company and the role we play for our customers,” said David Rawlinson II, Qurate's president and CEO.
The shopping channel began on radio out of Clearwater in 1977, then moved to local cable television in 1982 as Home Shopping Club out of St. Petersburg. It went national in 1985 as Home Shopping Network. It was rebranded as HSN in 2000, and purchased by Qurate, then known as Liberty Interactive, in 2017.
“We have the deepest appreciation to the state of Florida and the St. Petersburg community for their support and dedication over HSN’s 47-year history," said Stacy Bowe, president of HSN Brand & U.S. Merchandising.
In West Chester, the retailers will settle with Qurate's others businesses in an 80-acre campus called Studio Park. Other brands include Ballard Designs, Frontgate, Garnet Hill and Grandin Road.
"The HSN brand will continue to be an integral part of Qurate Retail Group as we activate our growth strategy and position the company for sustained success moving forward,” Bowe said. "We look forward to continuing to delight our customers as we make this transition to our new home.”
