The following retailers in the United States and Canada have all either closed or announced plans to close large numbers of retail locations, since 2010, deemed a "retail apocalypse" by media, accelerated by both the increase in online shopping and by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Retailers 0-9 7-Eleven closed 592 locations in the US in 2024 and 2025, following a 26% drop in purchases since 2019. Another 645 closures are planned for fiscal year 2026. 99 Cents Only Stores announced on April 4, 2024 that its 371 locations in the Western United States would begin to close. The COVID-19 pandemic, inflation, and shrink were cited as major reasons for the closure. The company had considered filing for bankruptcy prior to the announcement. Later, in May 2024, it was reported that Dollar Tree had acquired the leases of at least 170 former 99 Cents Only Stores locations, which would reopen as Dollar Tree stores beginning in the fall of the same year.
A A.C. Moore announced on November 25, 2019 that all 145 of its stores would close. The Michaels Companies acquired A.C Moore's intellectual property, websites, and one distribution center for $58 million; Michaels also took over 40 store leases. Abercrombie & Fitch has closed numerous stores under its own brands, including Hollister Co. and abercrombie kids, since 2015. Advance Auto Parts announced in November 2024 the closure of 500 corporate stores, 200 independent stores, and four distribution centers, citing declining consumer demand. Said closures were completed by late March 2025. Aerosoles (AGI HoldCo) filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 2017 and closed 74 retail stores, leaving only four flagship stores in New York and New Jersey. Aéropostale filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in May 2016 and closed 113 stores in the United States, along with all of its 41 stores in Canada. It emerged from bankruptcy in September. A'gaci filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February 2018 and announced plans to close 49 of its 76 stores. The chain filed for its second bankruptcy and liquidation on August 7, 2019, closing the remaining 54 stores with plans to auction its intellectual property. ALCO Stores filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on October 12, 2014; all of its stores were closed by March 2015. Aldo filed for bankruptcy on May 7, 2020, citing repercussions related to the COVID-19 pandemic as to why. The shoe chain emerged from bankruptcy two years later. Alfred Angelo bridal stores shuttered all locations on July 13, 2017, with little advance notice. Frustrated customers were handed bankruptcy forms after walking away empty-handed. The company's corporate offices were abandoned and stores across the United States emptied and shuttered, but the store's official website remained active with no reference to the closure. Allbirds closed 23 retail locations in the United States in February 2026. This left the shoe retailer with just two outlet stores in California and Massachusetts and two full-price stores in London, down from 60 stores worldwide and 45 in the US in 2023. Amazon announced plans to shut down all 57 Amazon Fresh and 15 Amazon Go locations in early 2026. Some of the shuttered locations were converted to Whole Foods stores. American Apparel closed all of its stores, a total of 110, in April 2017 after being acquired by Gildan Activewear. 2,400 workers were laid off. American Eagle Outfitters announced that it would close up to 200 to 250 mall-based locations in January 2021 while expanding its subsidiary Aerie significantly. Shares rose for the company afterward, ending up making Aerie a brand of over two billion dollars. In January 2026, American Eagle announced plans to close a further 35 stores. American Freight announced that it would be closing all 328 of its locations on November 5, 2024 after its parent company, Franchise Group Inc., filed for bankruptcy. American Signature, Inc., which includes its namesake chain and Value City Furniture, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November 2025 as part of a plan to sell its assets via a stalking horse bid within 45 days. On January 9, 2026, after no buyers were found, the company announced the closure of all of its remaining locations under its two brands nationwide.American Signature, Inc. Files Voluntary Petitions for Chapter 11 ReliefValue City Furniture closing all remaining stores, months after filing for bankruptcy The Andersons, a conglomerate based out of Toledo, Ohio, announced in January 2017 that it would close its remaining stores in Ohio. The stores closed in June 2017 after 65 years in business. Ann Taylor parent company Ascena Retail Group filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in July 2020, stating that it planned to permanently close a "significant" number of Justice stores, along with certain Ann Taylor, Loft, Lane Bryant, and Lou & Grey stores, in addition to permanently closing all of its stores in Canada, Puerto Rico, and Mexico, and closing all 326 stores under the Catherines brand. In November 2020, it was announced that the remaining Justice locations would be shuttered by early 2021. Apple plans to close three Apple Store locations in struggling shopping malls in Trumbull, Connecticut; Escondido, California; and Towson, Maryland in June 2026. Arden B closed all stores by 2015 as part of a turnaround plan by parent company Wet Seal. The Art of Shaving announced in January 2020 that parent company, Procter & Gamble, planned to close most of its 83 retail locations. As of 2024, the retailer has switched to an online-only model, after closing its last location in Orlando, Florida on January 2, 2024. Art Van Furniture, which had 300+ stores across the Midwest, announced on March 5, 2020, that it would close all stores. The company was founded by Archie "Art" Van Elslander, who opened the first store in 1959 in southwest Michigan. AT&T closed more than 250 locations permanently and laid off 3,400 of its staff in 2020. At Home announced in June 2025 that it would likely file for bankruptcy in days and close 20 of its 262 stores. It did so on June 16 and increased the store closure amount from 20 to 26. Avenue filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on August 9, 2019, shutting down all its stores and moving to e-commerce operations only. A&P, once America's largest retailer with 15,709 stores at its peak, closed its remaining supermarkets in November 2015 after 156 years in business. This included its namesake chain, along with Food Basics, The Food Emporium, Pathmark, Super Fresh and Waldbaum's, with over half of its stores sold to Acme Markets, Key Food (which included its Food Emporium chain and the Super Fresh trademark) and Stop & Shop.
B Bargain Hunt, a Nashville, Tennessee-based discount retailer, closed all 92 locations in 10 states in February 2025. Barneys New York filed for bankruptcy on August 6, 2019. 15 of 22 stores closed, including Barneys flagship stores in Las Vegas, Chicago, and Seattle in addition to all but two of its outlet stores. In early 2020, it was announced that the remainder of Barneys' locations would be liquidated. Bath & Body Works announced the closure of 50 US stores and one Canadian store, along with the opening of 26 new stores, in May 2020 due to sales slumping amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Bath & Body Works closed 92 more stores in 2026, but refused to pull back from brick-and-mortar locations. BCBG Max Azria announced the closure of its stores in 2017, planning on going to department stores and online only. BCBG Max Azria Group filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on February 28, 2017, and was taken over by Marquee Brands and Global Brands Group. Bebe announced plans to close all stores and focus solely on online sales. At its peak, Bebe operated a total of 312 stores. However, by March 2017, this was down to 172. Bed Bath & Beyond announced in April 2019 that it would close 40 stores and also open 15 new stores that year. The company continued to struggle through the retail apocalypse, and in late summer of 2022, Bed Bath & Beyond announced plans to close 150 stores, lay off 20% of its corporate and supply chain staff, and eliminate the role of COO and CSO within the company. Liquidity was raised to about $1 billion after a loan and additional financing were secured. Bed Bath & Beyond's stock was also down on the market by 28%. Analysts warned that the company was teetering on the edge of a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, citing that it could be too late to turn things around and that the company could default on its debt. Further exacerbating the financial woes, CFO Gustavo Arnal committed suicide only a few days after the store closures were announced. After months of continued losses and empty shelves, the chain warned that it was unable to pay off its debts and would potentially file for bankruptcy. In late January 2023, Bed Bath & Beyond announced the closure of an additional 87 stores, the liquidation of its Harmon Face Values chain, and the closure of 5 Buy Buy Baby stores. On February 8, 2023, Bed Bath & Beyond announced that it would close another 150 stores, selling its stock and raising $1 billion in an effort to stave off a bankruptcy filing. Days later, the chain's Canadian division was declared insolvent and began closing its 54 stores, also winding down its Canadian Buy Buy Baby operations. When a lifeline from Hudson Bay Capital Management failed to supplement the struggling home goods retailer, in addition to a $300 million stock offering never coming to fruition, Bed Bath & Beyond finally filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on April 23, 2023, and announced that all of its remaining stores, including the entire Buy Buy Baby brand, would be shuttered, with liquidation sales starting on April 26. The chain's assets were purchased by Overstock.com in a June 2023 auction; Overstock announced its intention to rebrand its online operations to the Bed Bath & Beyond name. A subsequent auction for sister chain Buy Buy Baby fell through, and its assets were sold to New Jersey-based Dream on Me on July 13, 2023. An attempt to relaunch eleven Buy Buy Baby stores failed by October 2024, as the brand moved to an online-only model. Best Buy issued forecasts of a 2.2% compound annual growth rate through 2021; analysts noted that competition from Amazon.com likely played into the low growth expectations. Its shares dropped 10% in value (roughly $1.7 billion in market value) on the news. On March 1, 2018, Best Buy announced that it would close all 250 Best Buy Mobile stores in the United States by the end of May 2018. However, none of the Mobile locations in Canada were impacted by the US closures. Big Lots announced in July 2024 that it would be closing 149 stores in 28 states, citing inflation and competition as the main causes of said closures. In August, additional store closures were announced, bringing the total of closing Big Lots locations to over 300. On September 9, 2024, Big Lots filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, planning to close additional stores upon being sold to its new owner, Nexus Capital Management LP. 50 of those additional stores were named in October, and another 56 were named within the month as well. While some closures ramped up, other locations cancelled liquidation sales and resumed regular operations. On December 19, 2024, Big Lots announced via a press release that its sale to Nexus fell through, and all 963 of its remaining stores would immediately begin going out of business. However, on December 28, 2024, Gordon Brothers, the company handling the liquidation sales, reached an agreement to sell up to 400 stores, two distribution centers, and intellectual property to Variety Wholesalers, which operates over 400 retail stores in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic US under various banners; Variety Wholesalers planned to continue operating the acquired stores under the Big Lots brand and retain up to 10,000 employees.