Store Tracker Extra: More Data Each Month

In our US Store Tracker Extra monthly series, we offer insight into retailers’ store closure and opening announcements on a monthly basis—supplementing our Weekly US and UK Store Openings and Closures Tracker report. We include retailer-level details on closures and openings as a percentage of total store base as well as square-footage impact. This report also offers a comparison between year-to-date announced closures and openings as of January 28, 2022 (corresponding to week 4 in our Weekly US and UK Store Openings and Closures Tracker) versus the comparable period in 2021 (the 4 weeks ended January 29, 2021).

2022 Major US Store Closures: Proportion of Store Base and Square Footage

As of January 28, 2022, major US retailers have announced 742 store closures for this year. This compares to 2,093 announced closures in the comparable period of 2021, as we discuss later in this report. In January 2022, the following retailers made store closure announcements:

• ACME Markets has closed one store year to date in 2022, which represents 1% of its total store base of 162 stores. The closure accounts for an estimated 84,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Barnes & Noble has closed one store year to date in 2022, which represents less than 1% of its total store base of 600 stores. The closure accounts for an estimated 14,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Bed Bath & Beyond plans to close 25 stores in 2022, which represent 3% of its total store base of 995 stores. The closures will account for an estimated 850,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Brooks Brothers has closed one store year to date in 2022, which represents 1% of its total store base of 170 stores. The closure accounts for an estimated 4,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Kmart plans to close two stores in 2022, which represent around 17% of its total store base of 12 stores. The closures will account for an estimated 188,000 square feet of total retail space.
• L.L.Bean has closed one store year to date in 2022, which represent 2% of its total store base of 56 stores. The closure accounts for an estimated 11,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Roses Discount Stores has closed one store year to date in 2022, which represents less than 1% of its total store base of 244 stores. The closure accounts for an estimated 126,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Sears plans to close two stores in 2022, which represent 5% of its total store base of 37 stores. The closures will account for an estimated 300,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Shaw’s has closed one store year to date in 2022, which represents 1% of its total store base of 129 stores. The closure accounts for an estimated 50,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Staples has closed one store year to date in 2022, which represents less than 1% of its total store base of 1,044 stores. The closure accounts for an estimated 23,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Stewart’s Shop has closed one store year to date in 2022, which represent less than 1% of its total store base of 335 stores. The closure accounts for an estimated 3,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Stop & Shop plans to close two stores in 2022, which represent less than 1% of its total store base of 413 stores. The closures will account for an estimated 130,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Walgreens Boots Alliance plans to close five stores in 2022, which represent less than 1% of its total store base of 8,965 stores. The closures will account for an estimated 78,000 square feet of total retail space.

In Figure 1, we offer a breakdown of estimated closures announced by various retailers, along with a representation of the proportion of their total store base that will be impacted.

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Figure 1. Year-to-Date Announced US Store Closures Estimates for 2022, by Retailer, in Comparison to Total Store Base (Listed by Most to Least Closures) [wpdatatable id=1665]

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Store-count information for retailers in the above list are based on the third quarter of the fiscal year ended January for most public companies. *Total store base is for North America as a US-specific breakdown could not be obtained. Source: Company reports/Coresight Research

Overall, the announced year-to-date closures equate to over 17.4 million square feet in closed retail space, we estimate. In Figure 2, we show the estimated square-footage impact of various retailers’ year-to-date store closure announcements for 2022.

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Figure 2. Year-to-Date Announced 2022 US Store Closures Estimates in Gross Square Feet, by Retailer (Thous.) [caption id="attachment_140490" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Source: Company reports/Coresight Research[/caption]  

2022 Major US Store Openings: Proportion of Store Base and Square Footage

As of January 28, 2022, major US retailers have announced 1,910 store openings. This compares to 1,854 announced openings in the comparable period of 2021, which we discuss later in this report. In January, the following retailers announced store openings for 2022:

• Amazon plans to open 13 stores in 2022, representing a 12% expansion of its existing store fleet of 107 stores. The new openings will account for an estimated 450,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Aritzia plans to open three stores in 2022, representing an 8% expansion of its existing store fleet of 40 stores. The new openings will account for an estimated 18,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Arula opened one store in 2022, representing a 4% expansion of its existing store fleet of 25 stores. The new opening accounts for an estimated 10,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Barnes & Noble plans to open one store in 2022, representing an expansion of less than 1% of its existing store fleet of 600 stores. The new opening will account for an estimated 14,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Big Lots plans to open 50 stores in 2022, representing a 4% expansion of its existing store fleet of 1,424 stores. The new openings will account for an estimated 1.6 million square feet of total retail space.
• BoConcept opened one store in 2022, representing a 6% expansion of its existing store fleet of 17 stores. The new opening accounts for an estimated 2,600 square feet of total retail space.
• Buc-ee’s plans to open three stores in 2022, representing a 7% expansion of its existing store fleet of 41 stores. The new openings will account for an estimated 159,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Citi Trends plans to open 45 stores in 2022, representing an 8% expansion of its existing store fleet of 600 stores. The new openings will account for an estimated 607,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Costco plans to open 19 stores in 2022, representing a 3% expansion of its existing store fleet of 572 stores. The new openings will account for an estimated 2.8 million square feet of total retail space.
• Earth Fare plans to open three stores in 2022, representing a 13% expansion of its existing store fleet of 23 stores. The new openings will account for an estimated 75,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Gabe’s opened one store in 2022, representing a 1% expansion of its existing store fleet of 119 stores. The new opening accounts for an estimated 42,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Grocery Outlet opened one store in 2022, representing an expansion of less than 1% of its existing store fleet of 407 stores. The new opening accounts for an estimated 17,500 square feet of total retail space.
• Gucci plans to open one store in 2022, representing an expansion of 1% of its existing store fleet of 166 stores. The new opening will account for an estimated 1,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Harbor Freight Tools opened one store in 2022, representing an expansion of less than 1% of its existing store fleet of 1,286 stores. The new opening accounts for an estimated 16,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Herman Miller opened one store in 2022, representing a 2% expansion of its existing store fleet of 48 stores. The new opening accounts for an estimated 1,800 square feet of total retail space.
• Hobby Lobby opened one store in 2022, representing a less than 1% expansion of its existing store fleet of 961 stores. The new opening accounts for an estimated 55,000 square feet of total retail space.
• QuickChek opened one store in 2022, representing a 1% expansion of its existing store fleet of 164 stores. The new opening will account for an estimated 6,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Smart & Final plans to open two stores in 2022, representing a 1% expansion of its existing store fleet of 254 stores. The new openings will account for an estimated 57,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Stewart’s Shop plans to open 27 stores in 2022, representing an 8% expansion of its existing store fleet of 335 stores. The new openings will account for an estimated 101,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Trader Joe’s plans to open four stores in 2022, representing a 1% expansion of its existing store fleet of 558 stores. The new openings will account for an estimated 46,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Wawa plans to open 20 stores in 2022, representing a 2% expansion of its existing store fleet of 850 stores. The new openings will account for an estimated 120,000 square feet of total retail space.

In Figure 3, we offer a breakdown of estimated openings announced by various retailers, along with a representation of the size of the expansion in proportion to their existing store base.

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Figure 3. Year-to-Date Announced US Store Openings Estimates for 2022, by Retailer, in Comparison to Total Store Base (Listed by Most to Least Openings) [wpdatatable id=1666]

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Store count information for retailers in the above list are based on reported counts from the third quarter of the fiscal year, ended January 2022 for most public companies. *Total store base count is for North America as a US-specific breakdown could not be obtained. **Aerie includes Aerie stores and OFFLINE stores. TJX Companies includes HomeGoods, Homesense, Marmaxx (Marshalls and T.J. Maxx) and Sierra stores. Amazon includes Amazon Fresh and Amazon Style banners. Source: Company reports/Coresight Research

Overall, the announced year-to-date openings equate to over 30.2 million square feet in new retail space, we estimate. In Figure 4, we show the square-footage impact of various retailers’ year-to-date store opening announcements for 2022.

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Figure 4. Year-to-Date Announced 2022 US Store Openings Estimates in Gross Square Feet, by Retailer (Thous.) [caption id="attachment_140492" align="aligncenter" width="700"] TJX Companies includes HomeGoods, Homesense, Marmaxx and Sierra stores. Amazon includes Amazon Fresh and Amazon Style banners. Aerie includes Aerie stores and OFFLINE stores.
Source: Company reports/Coresight Research[/caption]  

2022 Versus 2021: A Year-to-Date Comparison

The charts below depict the week-by-week totals of announced US store closures and openings year to date in 2022, as well as the comparative figures for 2021. Compared to this time last year, openings announcement totals are ahead in 2022, while closures announcements are behind. Year-to-date announced store closures in January 2022 are led by drugstores, which account for 357 closures, primarily due to CVS Health’s plan to close 300 stores in 2022. The closures for the sector representing 48% of total closures. The year-to-date equivalent closures for January 2021 was led by apparel retailers, which accounted for 967 closures, representing 46% of total closures. Year-to-date announced store openings in January 2022 are led by discount store retailers, which account for 1,208 openings, representing 63% of total openings. The year-to-date equivalent openings for January 2021 were also led by discount store retailers, which accounted for 1,124 openings, representing 61% of total announced openings.

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Figure 5. US Announced Store Closures and Openings: Week-by-Week Comparison, 2022 (Top) vs 2021 (Bottom) [wpdatachart id=373] [wpdatachart id=374]

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January 2022 and 2021 span weeks 1 to 4. Coresight Research periodically updates the count for openings and closures when there are new updates or revisions to previous announcements from companies, and this could involve retrospective revisions of totals for some weeks. Source: Company reports/Coresight Research

US Retail Bankruptcies: 2022 Versus 2021

There were no major retail bankruptcies in January 2022. In the table below, we list bankruptcy filings for the comparable period of 2021, ended January 31, 2021. Our Retail Bankruptcies Databank offers a more detailed list of US and UK retail companies, restaurants and gyms that have filed for bankruptcy since March 2020.

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Figure 6. 2021 Major US Retail Bankruptcies as January 31, 2021 [wpdatatable id=1667]

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Source: Company reports/Coresight Research

Notes Figures represent store openings and closures that occurred, or are expected to occur, in the respective calendar years. For some retailers, store opening and closure numbers are estimated, including from part-year data, global figures or announced closure/opening programs that span multiple years. Estimates are updated as companies announce details. Figures for openings and closures are gross. Figures represent retail (B2C) closures, so closures by solely B2B companies are excluded. Total square footage being opened or closed is typically estimated from retailers’ average gross store sizes.