Another Odd Twist in the Bizarre Return of Ames to New England

It is a real-life Michael Scott joke with no punchline; a WWE storyline with no payoff. It’s the bizarre, supposed return of a beloved (but....only kind of moderately missed) department store that has become an odd obsession for many New Englanders.

And I’m one of them. So, strap in for the latest odd turn in the Rumored Return of Ames!

After I wrote an article about a supposed update to the store’s improbable, out of the blue comeback, a reader (and one-time Ames employee) reached out to notify me that the brand’s official site was up and running.

But as quickly as it appeared…it was gone. Just the latest New Hampshire unsolved mystery.

If you go to (link) right now, you’ll be informed that the website has been taken down.

The end to an obvious hoax, right? Ohhhhhh no.

After some more poking around, I discovered that an account which claims to belong to Ames is now posting updates on Twitter, including apologies for its delayed comeback, the website going kaput, and a whole bunch of other questions from followers, fans, and would-be consumers.

The pinned tweet for the account reads:

"Due to an issue with our service provider. We have to postpone the new website launch and locations announcement until March. We were extremely excited to share our news with you, however, before we can a migration to a more powerful server is a must. We apologize."

Well, if that doesn’t quell your suspicions!

When asked by one user to provide proof of a store being built, or at least share how large one would be, the account said:

"Sq ft depends on the location. If it's a rural location, expect it to be around 80,000 and below. If it is a city location, it can be upwards of 134,000 sq ft. We currently aren't building any new locations but opening in existing locations."

When pressed for more information, like whether Ames will fill the locations of other dormant stores, the account replied: