The retail apocalypse continues across the United States, with Walmart announcing more store closures, including an unexpected one in South Bend, Indiana.
Sad news for shoppers in South Bend, Indiana, with confirmation from city officials today that the Walmart at 3701 Portage Road will close on April 21.
Both the retail store and the pharmacy will close on this date, with the pharmacy working on transferring customers' prescriptions to another location.
"This decision was not made lightly and was reached only after a thorough review process. We have 5,000 stores across the U.S. and unfortunately, some do not meet our financial expectations. While our underlying business is strong, this specific store hasn’t performed as well as we hoped, there is no single cause for why a store closes and our decision is based on several factors, including historic and current financial performance, and is in line with the threshold that guides our strategy to close underperforming locations.” Felicia McCrainie, communications director for Walmart in the northern and eastern United States.
Walmart is hoping that employees transfer to one of theireir locations nearby. Meanwhile, the city will begin working on attracting a new retailer to the location.
“We are reaching out to Walmart to understand what went into this decision and how this will impact employees. The city will be a willing partner in finding and supporting a new retailer for that location.” Caleb Bauer, executive director of community investment for the city.
The retail industry has been hit hard of late; over the last month, more than 1400 retail stores have been listed to close, with the possibility of more to come.
For a complete list of retail stores closing in Indiana, read this article, and to keep up to date with all the latest retail developments, please follow me.
Your thoughts
Does the closing of Walmart on Portage Road affect you? Do you believe the government should offer these businesses more financial support? Are you concerned about those people who will lose their jobs? Who is to blame for all these closures?
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