Coresight Research has issued its predictions for 2025 store openings and closures by sector in the United States, with store closures up to about 15,000 and store openings steady at 5,800.
Closures announced late in 2024 and early in 2025 by Party City, Big Lots, Macy’s and Kohl’s are among those behind the elevated number of shutterings. Coresight already has tracked more than 2,000 planned closures this year, the market researcher stated. Major U.S. retailers have announced 29.6% fewer openings and 334.3% more closures when compared to 2024 activity.
Coresight stated that major store closure programs, as envisioned, now fall into three broad categories: liquidations resulting in all stores closing, distressed retailers closing large swathes of stores, often as part of Chapter 11 bankruptcy restructuring, and legacy retailers reshaping their store footprints due to a changed retail context.
Store closures increased in 2024, the market researcher noted, reaching 7,325 in 2024, the highest number of store closures seen since 2020. Store openings totaled 5,970 in 2024, the highest number of store openings since 2012 when Coresight Research began tracking the data. Net store loss in 2024 was 1,355 stores.
“Inflation and a growing preference among consumers to shop online to find the cheapest deals took a toll on brick-and-mortar retailers in 2024,” said Coresight Research CEO Deborah Weinswig in announcing the forecast. “Last year, we saw the highest number of closures since the pandemic. Retailers that were unable to adapt supply chains and implement technology to cut costs were significantly impacted, and we continue to see a trend of consumers opting for the path of least resistance. Not only do they want the best prices, but they also have no patience for stores that are constantly disorganized, out of stock and that deliver poor customer service. We have seen Shein and Temu capture market share as consumers choose to shop online to save time, money and avoid frustration. Retailers need to embrace technologies like artificial intelligence to deliver a better customer experience and to optimize pricing to remain relevant and avoid ongoing closures.”
