If you're a fan of the shopping experience of touching fabrics and trying on fragrance samples with your fingertips, you'd better hurry, as more and more U.S. brick-and-mortar chains will disappear in 2020, and some major retailers are reconsidering their brick-and-mortar strategies.
According to consultancy Coresight Research, the number of brick-and-mortar stores closed so far in 2019 is staggering — more than 9,000, up from the 5,800 that closed in 2018, and the upcoming 2020 could be an even worse year.
Let's take a brief look at the physical chain brands that have made more store closure plans for 2020:
1. American clothing brand Chico's
Number of store closures planned for 2020: Up to 250 Chico's was founded in 1983 by a husband and wife group to produce fine women's clothing, accessories and lingerie, and has grown rapidly to more than 1,400 stores in the United States and Canada. But now, the chain is changing the way traditional stores operate — closing 250 U.S. stores by early 2022. At the same time, Chico's is also partnering with Amazon, ShopRunner and QVC to meet the changing needs and shopping habits of its 8 million customers.
2. The number of clothing brand Gap stores planned to close in 2020: The scale of Gap's
chain of up to 230 stores is shrinking. After a not-so-pleasant 2018 holiday season (when Gap's sales fell 5 percent), the company made the decision to close about half of its stores by 2020, and it's unclear how many have already been closed. Not only that, but the size of other Gap stores will also be reduced. Robert Fisher, the company's chairman, said the closure of the stores would breathe new life into the 50-year-old brand. But perhaps the most shocking development is the news that Gap plans to separate itself from its Old Navy. Gap announced that Old Navy will exit the Chinese market from 2020 after the independent spin-off, and will focus on the North American market in the future to maximize benefits, and the spin-off transaction is expected to close as soon as next year.
3. Office Depot
Number of stores planned to close in 2020: Up to 90 In the future, you may have to drive further away at lunchtime to get cartridges and envelopes. Given the huge potential of the B2B market, Office Depot has already announced that it will close 90 stores in 2021, the latest move after closing 55 stores last year. The office supply company also owns the Office Max brand, and some of its stores are also facing closure. At its peak in 2006, the retailer's share price almost reached $44, but in the third quarter of 2019 it was just $2.5.
Joe Lower, the company's chief executive, once told investors that "in three years, the company's stores may only account for 20 percent of total sales."
4. Home goods shopping brand Bed Bath & Beyond
Number of stores planned to close in 2020: Up to 60 Bed Bath & Beyond stores are mostly huge, with some showrooms covering more than 80,000 square feet and about 300,000 exhibits from floor to ceiling. As of the end of August 2019, the company had more than 1,500 stores in the United States and Canada, including approximately 1,000 Bed Bath & Beyond stores. But the retailer plans to close 40 of those stores by March 2020, and another 20 BB&B chains, including buybuy BABY and Cost Plus World Market stores, will also close. The company's executives say their goal is to find a better balance between physical and digital businesses.
5. Womenswear and boutique retailer Christopher & Banks
Number of stores planned to be closed in 2020: Up to 40 In 1956, Gil Braun started "Braun's Fashions," the predecessor of Christopher & Banks, in Minneapolis. By 2000, the latter had grown into two brands, Christopher & Banks and CJ Banks, with more than 500 stores. But in one quarter of 2018, Christopher &ks lost $8.8 million, but its online sales grew nearly 11 percent. As a result, the company is cutting down on the number of stores and diverting more resources to its e-commerce business. The company's plan is to close 30 to 40 stores by the end of 2020. At the same time, the retailer has been delisted from the NYSE due to its low share price.
6. Number of stores planned to close in 2020 by CVS: Up to 22 largest pharmacy chains in the U.S. CVS plans to close up to 24 pharmacies in 2020, about half of the number of stores closed in 2019, and the number of existing CVS
stores is about 9,900. Today, the pharmacy chain operator is focusing on stores that offer walk-in MinuteClinics, which provide basic medical care to visitors. Eva Boratto, the company's chief financial officer, hopes that closing underperforming stores will yield "better long-term results".
7. Luxury department store Lord & Taylor
Number of stores planned to be closed in 2020: 2 Lord & Taylor is the oldest luxury department store in the United States, founded in 1826, its flagship store on Fifth Avenue between 38th and 39th Streets in Manhattan, New York, has been open since 1914, and is one of New York's famous landmarks. But Lord & Taylor's parent company, Canadian luxury department store operator Hudson's Bay Co (HBC), has officially announced the sale of Lord & Taylor to Le Tote, a U.S.-based fashion rental website with a monthly subscription. At the same time, at the beginning of 2020, stores in two places will close. The company said the closure was largely due to economic considerations and said it would work closely together to help laid-off employees through the transition.
8. Discount chain Kmart plans to close stores in 2020: 2 Kmart
was founded in 1962, and the discount chain had nearly 2,500 stores worldwide in 1994, but declared bankruptcy twice in 2002 and 2018. In recent years, Kmart has been in a state of "steady closure", with dozens of Kmart stores closed in 2019 alone. According to a statement released by the company in August 2019, it "has not ruled out the possibility of closing more stores in the near future," but company representatives have been tight-lipped about which stores to close. "Our goal remains to get the company back to profitability and to keep as many jobs as possible in the communities we serve," Kmart wrote in a statement. 9. Sears Department Store Number of stores planned to close in
2020: 1 130-year-old Sears Department Store is slowly dying out. Once the largest retailer in the United States, the iconic chain played a key role in the rise of shopping malls, and its innovative mail-order catalog changed the way people shop forever. The company emerged from bankruptcy in 2019, but it doesn't look any stronger. In the months since, Sears has seen another wave of store closures. By the end of 2019, dozens of stores will be closed. It has also been reported that Sears is exploring potential asset sales possibilities, including its DieHard brand.
10. Macy's Planned number of stores to close in
2020: 1 A landmark eight-story store in downtown Seattle is set to close in February 2020 and is arguably the latest example of Macy's woes. The store has been downsized to several floors last year, with other floors of Macy's being leased to Amazon Inc. as offices. So far, this is the only store Macy's has confirmed will close in 2020. But it's almost certain that more stores will appear on this list in the future, as the company usually publishes a similar list after the shopping holidays. Meanwhile, Macy's announced its third-quarter results earlier this month, but it showed a "no miracle" Macy. According to the data, Macy's total net sales in the third quarter of this year fell 4.3% year-on-year to $5.17 billion, and net profit for the quarter fell 97% to $2 million, and same-store sales fell for the first time in two years (3%). Jeff Gennette, chairman and chief executive of Macy's, complained on earnings call, "This performance is due to the delay in cold weather, the continued weakness in international tourism and the lack of footfall in second- and third-tier shopping malls."Foot is also one of the reasons for the impact on sales."