In recent years, some of the country’s biggest retail businesses have been facing challenges. Intense competition and staff shortages have put the operations of various companies at risk. As a result, many popular retail chains are shutting down hundreds of stores nationwide this year. Changing customer habits and the rising preference for online shopping are some factors that contributed to this trend. Most companies view this as an opportunity to streamline operations and cut costs.

Foot Locker
Popular shoe brand Foot Locker has announced plans to close around 400 stores in the coming two years. This mainly includes its underperforming outlets across shopping malls. The brand now plans to focus on rebranding and opening new concept stores outside malls. With these new stores, the brand aims to better connect with a more niche audience, such as sneakerheads.

Starbucks
Even one of the most preferred coffeehouse chains, Starbucks, has announced store closures. Recently, the brand announced its plans to close around 100 stores. According to the coffeehouse chain, this decision was formed based on the evaluation of the stores. This comes after the company, in 2020-2021, announced the closure of its 500 stores.

Macy’s
Macy’s, a popular chain of department stores, recently announced plans to shut down hundreds of its stores. Four years ago, the company announced a restructuring plan, which involved closing around 125 of its stores. Then, the next year, the company closed around 45 of its retail outlets. Two years later, in 2023, the company shut down its several stores across 4 locations. The trend does not seem to subside, as, in February 2024, Macy’s announced its plans to shut down 150 stores in the coming three years.

Dollar Tree (Family Dollar)
One of this year’s most significant closure announcements comes from Dollar Tree, which owns the variety store chain Family Dollar. The company announced that it is closing around a thousand Family Dollar stores in the country, mainly due to facing huge losses. Out of those 1,000, the company plans to close around 600 stores in the first half of 2024.

Gap
Gap, one of the most popular apparel brands, has announced plans to close around 350 Gap and Banana Republic stores across North America. According to the company, the main reason behind this closure is the lack of customer turnout across its outlets due to increasing preference for online shopping. The brand also stated that this adjustment is part of its efforts to focus on fewer but better-performing chain stores and adapt to changing shopping habits.

Fossil
Fossil, the popular handbag and watch company, faced a massive loss of around $96 million in 2023. As a result, the brand plans to shut down 65 to 75 of its stores across the country. The company also mentioned that it is taking advantage of the lease expirations of these locations by closing the stores. Fossil now plans to focus more on its online stores and boost its digital presence.

Applebee’s
The casual dining chain is planning to close over 30 of its outlets this year. This follows the brand shutting down 46 locations in 2023 due to an underperforming year.

Burger King
Despite being one of the most popular fast food chains, Burger King closed around 400 stores across the country in a year. The brand also announced recently that more closures are underway and that they are shutting down aging outlets and stores that are not performing well.

Bath & Body Works
Just like Foot Locker, Bath & Body Works also announced the closure of quite a few of its in-mall stores. Reports say that the brand might close around 50 outlets across different locations. The company has also stated its plans to open more of its stores outside malls.

Goodwill
Goodwill, the nonprofit thrift store chain, has been highly popular among customers for discounted clothes and books. However, the company has been suffering economically for quite some time. Due to that, Goodwill has announced the closure of around 8 of its stores across the country.

Foxtrot
Foxtrot, the hybrid convenience store chain, has closed around 33 of its retail stores across the country this year. This comes after reports of the brand failing to meet its sales targets for 2023. Despite offering an innovative experience to its customers and adding deliveries to its business model, the brand failed to meet the set sales goals, leading to various stores shutting down.

Rue21
This apparel brand has been hit hard by the recent health crisis and increased competition. After declaring bankruptcy for the third time recently, Rue21 also announced the closure of more than 500 stores across the country. The brand also mentioned in its announcement that the changing consumer preferences had impacted its business.

The Body Shop
One of the most surprising decisions regarding store shutdowns comes from The Body Shop, a cosmetics and skincare brand. The brand has been highly admired for its cruelty-free and sustainable products. But earlier this year, it declared bankruptcy and announced the closure of all its operations in the country.