T-L Photo/GAGE VOTA Sports Clips, located on the perimeter of the Ohio Valley Mall, recently closed without warning, with employees saying they were left in limbo.

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — Sports Clips, located on the perimeter of the Ohio Valley Mall, unexpectedly closed recently, surprising many employees and customers.

The move also came as a surprise for Joe Bell, the director of communications for the mall’s parent Cafaro Co.

The building that Sports Clips operated in is owned by the Cafaro Co. and was leased to Sports Clips when it opened in 2017. When asked about the recent closing, Bell said he was unaware it had happened but would reach out to the Cafaro Co.’s leasing department.

Once Bell spoke to the leasing department, he said his understanding is that the franchise owner of that specific location didn’t give any explanation for the abrupt closure.

“From what we understand, the person who had that particular franchise just sort of ceased operations and we don’t know why. But we’ve been in touch with Sports Clips’ corporate office,” he said. “It is our hope that somewhere down the line, another operator will take over that particular franchise.”

He added that he believes the Sports Clips corporate offices have expressed an interest in reopening the location under new franchise ownership.

Bell said if the decision is made to reopen the franchise location under new ownership, Cafaro would have to structure a new agreement with Sports Clips’ corporate offices.

“I think they would prefer to have someone who is more reliable in that particular location, and we would have to work out a new agreement with the corporate office to bring in a new franchise operator for that place,” he said.

Bell added that due to the abruptness of the closure, before a new owner could take over the location they would have to hash out the details pertaining to the previous owner’s agreement to ensure both parties receive a fair deal.

He said the Cafaro Co. and Sports Clips will continue to be in communication, and he is hopeful that an arrangement can be made to reopen the location as soon as possible.

When asked about the recent closure, Dana Dussing Berry, managing partner of Stone Ward Public Relations that represents Sports Clips, said, “The store was closed by the local franchisee. No additional information is available at this time.”