(See the comments section for the list of retailers thriving in 2009)
This was originally compiled after seeing a forwarded e-mail back in January. Since then, I’ve updated it as news came out. If there are more, please tell me and I’ll add them to the list.
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Apparel/Accessories:
* Ann Taylor: closing 117 of its 959 women’s-clothing stores
* Caché: closed 14 stores (but, according to AZbiz.com, is also opening stores and currently has 295 across the country)
* Charming Shoppes(operator of plus-size women’s apparel stores Lane Bryant, Fashion Bug, and Catherine’s): has closed 150 of approximately 2,360 stores
* Club Libby Lu: All
* Eddie Bauer: filed bankruptcy – August 2009
* Foot Locker: closed 140 stores out of more than 3,500 in North America
* The Gap: closing 85 of its 2,677 Gap, Old Navy, and Banana Republic stores (but, according to AZbiz.com, also repositioning and opening others)
* Goody’s: Closing 287 Stores
* J. Jill: announced about a month ago that it will be closing all 78 of its kids and men’s stores.
* Lane Bryant, Fashion Bug, Catherine’s: 150 stores
* Lillian Vernon: filed for bankruptcy
* Macy’s: closed 11 department stores this year
* Mervyns: will liquidate and close its 149 remaining stores after the holidays
* Pacific Sunware: closed all 228 stores that were branded as Demo stores featuring “urban-style” clothes. [Note: one report puts the total at 154 stores.]
* Shoe Pavilion: liquidating and will close all stores by the end of the year. It had 117 stores when it filed for Chapter 11 reorganization
* Sigrid Olsen: all 54 stores (operated by Liz Claiborne), were closed
* Steve and Barry’s: Closing all 173 stores
* Talbots: closed 22 stores, 2 percent of its total
* Wilson Leather: closed 160 stores, 62 percent of its total, and converting the remaining stores into a new women’s-accessories concept
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Automotive:
* Pep Boys: closed 31 locations, about 5 percent of its auto-supply and -repair stores
* GM: File For Bankruptcy
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Casual Dining:
* Bennigan’s Grill and Tavern all 200 company-owned restaurants were closed as part of a Chapter 7 bankruptcy liquidation filing in July
* Mrs. Fields: filed for bankruptcy
* Starbucks: closing 600 underperforming stores, 19 percent of its total
* Monell’s Restaurants: All Restaurants Nationwide – Files for Bankruptcy
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Department Stores:
* Boscov’s: family-owned retailer filed for bankruptcy protection; may still have to liquidate its inventory to satisfy debts; has 29 stores
* Dillard’s: closed 3 stores, may close more
* JC Penney: closing a number of stores after January
* Walgreens: Cancelled 30% of its approved-for-development stores – and slowed growth from 450 stores/year to maybe 200
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Electronics/Entertainment:
* Blockbuster: Closing 960 Stores!
* Circuit City: DOA 3/9/2009 All 721 stores closed!
* CompUSA: liquidated all 103 of its stores in January
* F.Y.E.: (For Your Entertainment): closed 100 stores, about 12 percent of its total; the Trans World Entertainment stores had operated under a variety of different names including Sam Goody, Suncoast Motion Picture Co., and Wherehouse Music, before being united under the F.Y.E. brand name.
* Fry’s Electronics: 17 stores
* Hollywood Video: nation’s second largest video-rental retailer closed 542 stores (plus another 378 operated under the name Movie Gallery) under Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization, which ended in May
* Movie Gallery: Closing 400 stores, may close completely.
* The Sharper Image: closed all 184 stores as part of a bankruptcy liquidation
* Tweeter Electronics: filed for bankruptcy in early November, and will only accept gift cards through December 31st or until its stores close
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Home Furnishings:
* Bombay Co.: filed for bankruptcy, closed all 388 stores in January
* Pier 1 Imports: Closed 50 stores, down from their original 125 projection
* Ethan Allen: closed 12 retail design centers and two service centers
* Home Depot: closing 21 out of 2,141 stores
* Home Depot Expot: Closing the remaining 34 stores
* Kirkland’s Home: home-decor retailer is closing 130 stores, about 37 percent of its store count, by the middle of next year
* Levitz Furniture: filed for bankruptcy; closing remaining stores
* Linens ‘N Things: liquidating and closing all 370 of its stores
* Mikasa: dinnerware and home-decor retailer in January closed all 86 of its outlet stores
* Lowe’s: plans to close some stores
* Wickes Furniture: closing down
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Jewelry
* Friedman’s/Crescent Jewelers: liquidated and closed 377 of 565 of its stores as of the end of July
* Piercing Pagoda: Closing all stores
* Whitehall Jewelers: in the final stages of liquidating and closing all 373 of its stores
* Zales: closed 105 stores, 3 percent of its total
* Shane Co.: Reorganizing – Filed Bankruptcy in January
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Other:
* Bank of America: to close 10% of their 6,100 stores / branches
* CostPlus World Market: trimmed about 6 percent of its stores, closing 18 of 314 locations
* The Disney Store: closed 98 of its 322 North American stores after being reacquired in March by The Disney Co.
* Office Depot: Closing 117 Store
* Rent-A-Center: closed 280 stores, about 8 percent of its total stores
* Piercing Pagoda: closing all stores
* Ritz Camera: Closing 300 Stores
* Southern Building Company: Files for Bankruptcy
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Telecommunications:
* Sprint/Nextel: closed 125 stores, about 8 percent of its total
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Toys:
* KB Toys: closed 156 stores, about 26 percent of its chain, a year ago after emerging from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. (Note: A spokesman for the company was quoted in October 2008 as saying, “We just opened 30 stores recently and we continue to serve the families that shop at the more than 460 locations nationwide.”)
MSN.com came out with a list of retailers that really did well in 2009. To contract the sobering list above, here’s what they reported:
1. Aaron’s rent-to-own furniture increased their revenue by 21%. With all the foreclosures, I guess this is not too surprising.
2. Aeropostale – These guys found a way to increase revenue 28%. That’s quite a contrast from the above list – of which clothing companies are the longest part.
3. Amazon.com was up 38% this year. Could it be people are finally looking to the web for the cheapest price on products?
4. Buckle – up 38%, even more than Aeropostale.
5. Dollar Tree – Another one that doesn’t surprise me. They increased revenue by 16% this year. I know my wife shops there more now than last year.
6. GameStop – Up 26% Hmm. . . do the kids have more disposable income now?
7. O’Reilly Automotive – Revenue increase 84% What? 84%? With the fall of the car industry, I guess people are now fixing their own cars. I haven’t seen this personally – but obviously O’Reilly has.
8. Priceline.com Up 46$ – I guess this is like DollarTree.
9. Staples – up 26%. I guess this is Staples.com, plus they bought Corporate Express last year. Otherwise, with businesses doing less business, won’t they be buying fewer paperclips?
10. Ulta Salon Up 25%. I have no idea what this company is.
Here’s their article: http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Investing/FindHotStocks/10-retailers-rising-in-the-recession.aspx
GOOD NEWS! Pier 1 Imports, which I once had on the Closing list, then had on the closing 125 stores list has now been revised. They announced this week that they are now only closing 50 stores.
Here’s a link to an article in Retail Marketing Magazine: http://retailtrafficmag.com/news/0929-financial-pier1-longevity-key/
Hey Lisa,
I know how you feel. Though not related to the recession, I was equally bummed when Pudding Pops went away.
Whether it’s the recession or not, if we don’t keep buying these childhood favorites, the companies that make them make not make it themselves.
Thanks Nicholas,
I checked the stores you mentioned and changed the wording. Some of them aren’t closing now, they’re just closing a whole bunch of stores. The list has been updated.
If anybody else has relevant updates or additions, please leave a comment.
Whoa, this list is very sobering, seeing all of them laid out like this. Kind of takes your breath away.
I have a silly one that actually really kind of hit me in the gut, for some strange reason. My mother bought me some DELISH-smelling shower gel for my birthday in May. It ran out so I went to look up the maker, as it was one with which I was unfamiliar. My research revealed that the maker is the same company that makes Mr. Bubble – or made Mr. Bubble. As I also found out that they went out of business like so many others.
http://www.reuters.com/article/fundsFundsNews/idUSN0535634520080805
It struck me in the gut (bath bubbles – whodathunkit?) because, it was almost as if the economic situation we now find ourselves in is erasing some of our childhood mainstays, and therefore, our history.
I know, I know – they’re just bath bubbles, but, this one really did get to me.
Weird, huh?
Check the following stores, you may have your facts wrong on these:
Pier One – Not closed.
Shane Co – Not closed.
Movie Gallery – Not closed.
Home Depot – Are they closing 15 or 21 stores?
A very interesting and in some ways sobering list. I don’t know quite what to think of it. In some instances I see a result of bad business model or bad management. Steve and Barry’s, for instance, seemed like a bad idea for a store when I first heard of them. Everything for $9? And the store here in Lincoln rented the old Montgomery Ward space which was huge couldn’t have been cheap. Does it make sense to offer basically the same quality and amount of stuff as an Old Navy in a retail space the size of a Sears? And Circuit City had been suffering from very bad corporate decisions for a long time. As a counter point to those two stores you don’t see Best Buy on the list and The Gap family (which includes Old Navy) performs a very modest 3% belt tightening. Linen N Things closed all of its stores but Bed Bath & Beyond, which is the EXACT same store, is still around.
Yeah, it sucks because a lot of people are losing jobs, but I can’t help but see a lot of this as symptom of our society’s recent aggressive investments and push for quick profits. Share holders want stores to grow, grow, grow and we finally reached oversaturation and the growth couldn’t be sustained.
I haven’t shopped in awhile so much of this list is news to me! This is an excellent resource. Some closings are not surprising (Starbucks for instance) as there really was a saturation point but others clearly demonstrate the impact of our economic woes. In many ways retail is not unlike the auto industry, in it’s failure to be forward thinking and change strategy before the crisis hit. Very sad.