The economy may be soaring, but retail stores in the United States experienced their worst year on record with 9,302 physical locations closing according to a report by Coresight Research.
The closings represent a 59% rise since 2018 when Toys “R” Us topped the annual list. Companies most affected by the terminations are Payless, Gymboree, Family Dollar, Sears, and Gap (which includes Old Navy, Banana Republic, Athleta stores in their grouping).
Payless and Gymboree both filed for bankruptcy in 2019 and led the list with almost 3,000 stores shuttered between the two former retail giants.
The report comes as U.S. markets recorded all-time highs on the day after President Trump was impeached by House Democrats. The data doesn’t necessarily reflect poor economic numbers overall, however. Bankruptcies feature throughout the report, and a shift away from physical stores is indicative of a growing trend among younger, more technologically focused shoppers who prefer to buy online.
Variety stores specializing in small-priced items such as Dollar Tree, Dollar General, and Family Dollar added more than 1,500 retail locations in 2019, and Dollar General announced it plans to add another 1,000 new locations in 2020.
