13 Major Retailers Closing 100 Or More Stores

It won’t be a very merry Christmas for thousands of employees of at least these 13 major retailers. Why, the retailers have all announced they’re closing at least 100 or more of their stores.

The stores won’t all close at once, and some won’t close for a year or more. In some cases, mergers, such as Office Depot and Office Max, have lead to excess stores. Sports Authority finally threw in the towel and is closing all of their stores.

24/7 Wall St writes: “As U.S. employment continues to improve in the years after the recession, Americans are more likely to have disposable income to spend on clothes and goods. Retail sales in the United States rose for the third straight month through January. Unfortunately for many brick-and-mortar retailers, an increasingly large share of Americans are shopping online, and sales at electronics and appliance stores and department stores fell by roughly 5% each compared to the same time last year. American brick-and-mortar retailers have had to make significant adjustments, and often this involves closing down stores. Major retailers such as Walgreens, Sports Authority, and even Walmart plan on closing at least 100 stores in the next year or so.

Time.com/Money calls it the Amazon Effect. It’s the age of Amazon, and brick-and-mortar retailers are feeling the pinch. Amazon’s dominance—bolstered by mostly lower prices, more options and increased convenience for shoppers–has caused stores across the mall to take a hit. Teen-apparel retailer Aéropostale filed for bankruptcy in May. Later that month, JC Penney announced that it would cut payroll and freeze overtime for its employees. The bad news isn’t only recent: In 2015, Penney announced it would close 40 locations, while fellow mall giant Sears has shuttered more than 200 locations over the past two years.

Note the headlines from 24/7 Wall St. and Time.com/Money. The first, by 24/7 Wall St., say’s 11 Major Retailers while Time.com/Money says 12 Major retailers. As the days march on towards the end of the year, Clark.com has an updated headline:

These 13 major retailers are each closing at least 100 stores. No doubt about it, it’s a rough ride in retail right now. With the rise in online shopping, discount shopping becoming the norm and the middle class shrinking, brick-and-mortar retail is doing quite a bit of downsizing. In fact, there are about 2,500 store closings in the works across the U.S.

Here’s the latest list:

1. Aéropostale: Number of store closings: 154

2. American Eagle: Number of store closings: 150 over three years

3. Chicos: Number of store closings: 120 stores between fiscal 2015 and 2017

4. The Children’s Place: Number of store closings: 200 between fiscal 2015 and 2017

5. Finish Line: Number of store closings: 150 by 2020 

6. Hancock Fabrics: Number of store closings: 255/all stores

7. Macy’s: Number of store closings: 100

8. Men’s Warehouse/Jos. A. Bank: Number of store closings: 250

9. Office Depot/Office Max: Number of store closings: 400 

10. Sports Authority: Number of store closings: 140/all stores

11. Walgreens: Number of store closings: 200 between 2015 and 2017

12. Walmart: Number of store closings: 154, but opening 300 worldwide

13. Wolverine World Wide: Number of store closings: 100