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 May 28, 2021 (corresponding to week 21 in our Weekly US and UK Store Openings and Closures Tracker) versus the comparable period in 2020 (the 22 weeks ended June 1, 2020).

2021 Major US Store Closures: Proportion of Store Base and Square Footage

As of May 28, 2021, major US retailers have announced 4,452 store closures for this year. This compares to 3,645 announced closures in the comparable period of 2020, as we discuss later in this report. In May 2021, the following retailers made store closure announcements:

• Bucky’s Convenience Stores has sold 94 stores to Casey’s General Stores in 2021, which represent 50% of its total store base of 188 stores. The sale will account for an estimated 282,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Carter’s plans to close an estimated 115 stores in 2021, which represent 13% of its total store base of 908 stores. The closures will account for an estimated 494,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Christopher & Banks plans to close all of its 449 stores in 2021. The closures will account for an estimated 1.6 million square feet of total retail space.
• Foot Locker plans to close an estimated 174 stores across its brands in 2021, which represent 8% of its total store base of 2,119. The closures will account for an estimated 862,300 square feet of total retail space.
• Fossil Group has closed 15 stores in 2021, which represent around 8% of its total store base of 189 stores in the US. The closures will account for an estimated 20,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Tapestry has closed 27 stores in 2021, which represent around 4% of its total store base of 645 stores in the US. The closures will account for an estimated 100,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Sally Beauty plans to close 70 stores in 2021, which represent around 3% of its total store base of 2,753 stores. The closures will account for an estimated 119,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Under Armour closed two stores in 2021, which represent less than 1% of its total store base. The closures will account for an estimated 10,000 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.

---

Figure 1. Year-to-Date Announced US Store Closures Estimates for 2021, by Retailer, in Comparison to Total Store Base (Listed by Most to Least Closures) [wpdatatable id=996 table_view=regular]

---

Store count information for retailers in the above list are based on the third quarter of the fiscal year ending January 2021 or the fourth quarter of the fiscal year ending December 2020 for most public companies. *Ascena Retail includes Justice, Catherines, Ann Taylor, Lane Bryant, LOFT and Lou & Grey. Amazon includes Amazon Fresh and Amazon Go banners. Foot Locker includes the Foot Locker, Lady Foot Locker, Champs Sports and Foot Action stores.    **Total store base count represented for Genesco is global. For Disney, Gap, Michaels Stores, Old Navy and Signet Jewelers the store count is for North America as a US specific breakdown could not be obtained. ***Foot Locker includes Foot Locker, Lady Foot Locker, Champs Sports and Foot Action stores.   ****Amazon includes Amazon Fresh and Amazon Go banners. Source: Company reports/Coresight Research Overall, the announced year-to date closures equate to over 50.2 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 2021.

---

Figure 2. Year-to-Date Announced 2021 US Store Closures Estimates in Gross Square Feet, by Retailer (Thous.) [caption id="attachment_128024" align="aligncenter" width="725"] Ascena Retail Group includes Justice, Catherines, Ann Taylor, Lane Bryant, LOFT and Lou & Grey. Amazon includes Amazon Fresh and Amazon Go banners. Foot Locker includes the Foot Locker, Lady Foot Locker, Champs Sports and Foot Action stores.
Source: Company reports/Coresight Research [/caption]  

2021 Major US Store Openings: Proportion of Store Base and Square Footage 

As of May 28, 2021, major US retailers have announced 4,161 store openings. This compares to 2,597 announced openings in the comparable period of 2020, which we discuss later in this report. In May, the following retailers announced store openings for 2021:

• Ahold Delhaize has acquired 58 stores from Southeastern Grocers in 2021, representing a 3% expansion of its existing fleet of 1,970 stores in the US. The acquisition will account for around an estimated 1.8 million square feet of total retail space.
• Aritzia plans to open six stores in 2021, representing a 21% expansion of its existing fleet of 29 stores in the US. The new openings will account for around an estimated 36,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Bath & Body Works plans to open an estimated 49 stores in 2021, representing an expansion of less than 3% of its existing fleet of 1,643 stores in the US. The new openings will account for an estimated 184,000 square feet of retail space.
• Camping World plans to open five stores in 2021, representing a 3% expansion of its existing fleet of 171 stores. The new openings will account for around an estimated 250,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Casey’s has opened 160 stores in 2021, representing a 7% expansion of its existing fleet of 2,219 stores. The new openings will account for an estimated 250,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Floor & Decor plans to open 11 stores in 2021, representing an 8% expansion of its existing fleet of 135 stores. The new openings will account for around an estimated 825,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Foot Locker plans to open an estimated 109 stores in 2021, representing an expansion of less than 5% of its existing fleet of 2,119 stores in the US. The new openings will account for an estimated 540,000 square feet of retail space.
• The Home Depot has opened one store in 2021, representing an expansion of less than 1% of its existing fleet. The new openings will account for an estimated 104,000 square feet of total retail space.
• L.L.Bean plans to open three stores in 2021, representing a 6% expansion of its existing fleet of 53 stores in the US. The new openings will account for an estimated 50,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Meijer has opened three stores in 2021, representing a 1% expansion of its existing fleet of 254. The new openings will account for an estimated 477,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Ollies’ Bargain Outlet plans to open an estimated 49 stores in 2021, representing a 13% expansion of its existing fleet of 385 stores. The new openings will account for an estimated 1.6 million square feet of total retail space.
• Primark plans to open three stores in 2021, representing a 30% expansion of its existing fleet of 10 stores in the US. The new openings will account for an estimated 108,000 square feet of retail space.
• Scheels plans to open two stores in 2021, representing a 7% expansion of its existing fleet of 29. The new openings will account for an estimated 440,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Sundance Catalog plans to open three stores in 2021, representing an 18% expansion of its existing fleet of 17. The new openings will account for an estimated 12,000 square feet of total retail space.
• Windsor plans to open an estimated 75 stores in 2021, representing a 38% expansion of its existing fleet of 200 stores. The new openings will account for an estimated 1.6 million square feet of total retail space.
• WHSmith plans to open 68 stores in 2021, representing an expansion of around 24% of its existing store fleet of 280 stores in the US. The new openings will account for an estimated 57,800 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.

---

Figure 3. Year-to-Date Announced US Store Openings Estimates for 2021, by Retailer, in Comparison to Total Store Base (Listed by Most to Least Openings) [wpdatatable id=997 table_view=regular]

---

Store count information for retailers in the above list are based on latest reported count (the third quarter of the fiscal year ended January 2021 or the fourth quarter of the fiscal year ended December 2020 for most public companies). *TJX Companies includes HomeGoods, Homesense, Marmaxx and Sierra stores **Total store base count for Genesco and Payless is global, while the store base count for Athleta, Old Navy and Signet Jewelers and Michaels Stores is for North America as a US-specific breakdown could not be obtained Amazon includes Amazon Fresh and Amazon Go banners ***Foot Locker includes the Foot Locker, Lady Foot Locker, Champs Sports and Foot Action stores. ****Aerie includes Aerie and OFFLINE stores **Total store count represented for Genesco and Payless is global, while the store base count Athleta, Old Navy and Signet Jewelers and Michaels Stores is for North America, as a US-specific breakdown could not be obtained. Source: Company reports/Coresight Research Overall, the announced year-to-date openings equate to over 68.8 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 2021.

---

Figure 4. Year-to-Date Announced 2021 US Store Openings Estimates in Gross Square Feet, by Retailer (Thous.) [caption id="attachment_128026" align="aligncenter" width="725"] TJX Companies includes HomeGoods, Homesense, Marmaxx and Sierra stores. Amazon includes Amazon Fresh and Amazon GO banners. Aerie includes Aerie stores and OFFLINE stores. Foot Locker includes the Foot Locker, Lady Foot Locker, Champs Sports and Foot Action stores. The square footage for Target is calculated on the assumption that the majority of stores the company expects to open in 2021 are small format stores. Note: Total includes a small number of retailers that will open less than 11,000 square feet of new retail space and so are not included in the chart.
Source: Company reports/Coresight Research [/caption]  

2021 Versus 2020: 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 2021, as well as the comparative figures for 2020. Compared to this time last year, both store closure and opening announcement totals are ahead of 2021. We estimate that total lUS store closures will reach nearly 10,000 and that store openings will total around 4,000 this year. Year-to-date announced store closures in May 2021 are led by apparel retailers, which account for 2,025 closures, representing 45% of total closures. The year-to-date equivalent closures for May 2020 were led by home and office retailers primarily due to Pier 1 Imports closing all of its stores. The sector had announced 1,161 closures and accounted for 32% of total announced closures. Year-to-date announced store openings in May 2021 are led by discount store retailers, which account for 1,931 openings, representing 46% of total openings. The year-to-date equivalent openings for May 2020 were also led by discount store retailers, which account for 1,197 openings, representing 46% of total announced openings.

---

Figure 5. US Announced Store Closures and Openings: Week-by-Week Comparison, 2021 (Top) vs 2020 (Bottom) [wpdatachart id=236] [wpdatachart id=237]

---

May 2021 spans weeks 18 to 21, while the comparable period in 2020 spans weeks 19 to 22: Our tracker counts map four weeks in January 2021, versus five weeks in January 2020. 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: 2021 Versus 2020

There were no major retail bankruptcies in May 2021. In the tables below, we offer a comparative view of year-to-date bankruptcy filings as of May 31, 2021, versus May 31, 2020. 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.

---

Figure 6. 2021 Major US Retail Bankruptcies as May 31, 2021 [wpdatatable id=1000 table_view=regular]

---

*Belk exited bankruptcy one day after filing N/A—Not Available Source: Company reports/Coresight Research

---

Figure 7. 2020 Major US Retail Bankruptcies as of May 31, 2020 [wpdatatable id=1001 table_view=regular]

---

*J.Crew Group includes J.Crew and Madewell banners. ** True Religion Apparel filed for bankruptcy for the second time after entering and exiting bankruptcy in 2017. *** Fairway Market filed for bankruptcy for the second time after entering and exiting bankruptcy in 2016 N/A – Not Available Source: Company reports/Coresight Research

Other Major US Retail Opening Announcements in May 2021

• Amazon has closed its Amazon Go store in Redmond, Washington in May 2021.
• Furniture retailer Bob Mills Furniture will open its 10th store, in Wichita, Oklahoma by November 2021.
• Department store chain Boscov’s Department Store plans to open its 49th store, in Niles, Ohio in October 2021.
• Apparel retailer Canada Goose has opened its fifth store in the US, in California, in May 2021.
• Electronics retailer Dyson has opened its fifth US store, in Brooklyn, in May 2021.
• Furniture retailer Ethan Allen has opened one store in May 2021, takings its total store count to 139.
• Apparel retailer Hurley will open its 37th US store, in New Jersey, in June 2021.
• Grocery retailer Hy-Vee has opened one store in Spring Lake Park, Minnesota in May 2021, taking its store count to 304.
• Department store chain Nordstrom has closed one store in May 2021, taking its store count to 357 stores.
• Apparel retailer Ralph Lauren has opened one store in May 2021, taking its store count to 232 stores.

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. Total square footage being opened or closed is typically estimated from retailers’ average gross store sizes.