The massive store closures in the US, dubbed the retail apocalypse, continued into 2019. The biggest loss to date for brick-and-mortar retail will be the closure of all 2,500 Payless shoe stores following a bankruptcy filing. The Gymboree Group will close all of its Gymboree and Crazy 8 children's clothing locations. Charlotte Russe clothing stores are also slated to disappear, while Family Dollar stores will be partially closed, remaining open and being converted into Dollar Tree locations (discount general stores).
When retail spending shifts rapidly online, even large department stores suffer. Sears made it into the top 10 in 2019 with 70 store closures, but other brands like Kmart (50 locations), JCPenney (27 locations), Macy's (9 locations), Kohl's (4 locations), and Nordstrom (3 locations) were also affected.
Retailers in the US closed 9.5 million square meters of retail space in 2017 and a record 14 million square meters in 2018, according to a ranking by Business Insider . 2019 could see a new record.
Massive store closures in the US, dubbed the retail apocalypse, are continuing in 2019. The biggest loss of brick-and-mortar retail announced so far will be the shuttering of all 2,500 Payless shoe stores following a bankruptcy filing. Gymboree Group will close all its locations of kids clothing stores Gymboree and Crazy 8. Charlotte Russe clothing stores are also to disappear while Family Dollar stores are partially closing, remaining open and being converted to Dollar Tree locations (cheap mixed-goods shops).
With retail money moving online quickly, large department stores are also suffering. Sears made the top 10 in 2019 with 70 locations closing, but other brands like Kmart (50 locations), JCPenney (27 locations), Macy's (9 locations), Kohl's (4 locations) and Nordstrom (3 locations) are also closing stores.
Retailers in the US closed 102 million square feet in 2017 and a record 155 million square feet of space in 2018, according to the ranking by Business Insider . 2019 might bring about a new record.
Keep in touch
