Niagara Pools and Spa has shut down for good, closing its Turnersville store and its sprawling Blackwood headquarters and warehouse after owner Ken Smith's retirement brought an end to a business that opened in 1957. Staff members confirmed the retirement, and the company's website now displays a closing message thanking customers for 60 years of support, though the business had actually operated for 69 years in South Jersey.
The closure, first reported by 42 Freeway, covers both the retail store in Turnersville and the 57,000-square-foot Blackwood headquarters and warehouse building in Gloucester Township. Niagara's service customer accounts have already been sold to Absolute Pools, a retailer based in Burlington County. The Blackwood property is now being marketed for sale by Vantage Commercial Real Estate, with both the Turnersville and Blackwood buildings listed.
Niagara originated in Voorhees before growing into a South Jersey mainstay that, according to the report, once operated as many as five locations, including one across the river in Pennsylvania. Over the decades the company's operations spanned retail stores, a warehouse, and pool service and installation work. By the time of the closure, the warehouse held very little pool-related inventory, with the company's core pool inventory and customer base sold off to other pool retailers.
A Final Walkthrough of an Empty Warehouse
When 42 Freeway visited the Blackwood warehouse, the space was described as basically empty, with office chairs being sold off for just $10 apiece. A Craigslist listing connected to the closure showed computers, printers, office furniture, chairs, and contractor tools up for sale, offering a glimpse of what remained after decades of operation at the site.
A final warehouse liquidation sale is running from Wednesday, November 4 through Saturday, November 7, with hours from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. The sale is cash only and includes warehouse shelving, ladders, tools, office furniture and furnishings, along with a few remaining pieces of outdoor furniture and other pool-related items.
Plans That Didn't Pan Out
Niagara had reportedly planned to turn part of the Blackwood location into a retail store while the Turnersville store was being closed, with the expectation that the business would keep operating out of the Blackwood warehouse. That plan did not move forward, and instead both properties are now listed for sale rather than serving as a continuing base for the business.
Elsewhere in the company's history, Yorkship Business Supply handled Niagara's printing needs through its Cherry Hill office back in the 1980s, a small detail that speaks to how long the business had been woven into the South Jersey commercial landscape before this year's shutdown.
An Industry That Had Already Been Shifting
Smith had spoken candidly about the pool and spa industry's ups and downs years before the closure. In a Q&A with AQUA Magazine, he called 2004 “kind of the high spot for everyone,” noting that conditions grew tougher in the years that followed. He described the business as running leaner, with much less inventory sitting in the warehouse and fewer early purchases being made during the downturn.
Smith also told the trade publication that Niagara had shifted toward more service work as customer habits changed, adding that “the median price of tubs has come down.” He framed the slowdown as part of a broader cycle rather than a permanent decline, saying, “It goes in cycles. We've had ups and downs before.” The company's standing in the industry had been recognized years earlier when AQUA Magazine included Niagara Pools and Spas on its 2009 AQUA 100 list of top pool and spa retailers, builders, and service companies.
For now, the company's peak employee count and the reason behind the retirement beyond Smith's own decision remain undisclosed. What is clear is that a business built in Voorhees and expanded across South Jersey for decades has reached its final chapter, with its remaining physical footprint being cleared out one liquidation sale at a time.
