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Leaving only four stores behind in a city of over 8,901,000 people, Walmart on Tuesday, April 11, announced that it will be closing four out of its eight stores in Chicago. Starting this Sunday, April 16, the four Chicago stores will no longer serve customers and will be shut down for good.
Explaining the reason behind such a decision, the retailer, in a statement, said that the Chicago stores have not been profitable since they were first opened 17 years ago. The four Chicago stores that will be closing their doors this upcoming Sunday are in the Chatham Supercenter, Kenwood Neighborhood Market, Lakeview Neighborhood Market, and Little Village Neighborhood Market.
While there are still at least four stores remaining in the Chicago region, the chain does not seem to have any such plans for them. As per the retailer, the remaining stores continue to face similar problems, but the closure of the other stores is expected to help them keep those stores open.
On its official website, the retail store chain addressed the closure of the four Chicago stores and said:
"Today we have made the difficult decision to close four of our stores in Chicago, we know the community will have questions about why we are closing these locations."
Giving a brief on the reasons for the closure, the national retailer added:
"The simplest explanation is that collectively our Chicago stores have not been profitable since we opened the first one nearly 17 years ago.
Walmart closes down four Chicago stores over major losses
While the last few years have been rough for several Americans, multiple businesses have also experienced the heat of inflation and bad business. One of the largest retailers in the United States, Walmart, has also faced many considerable losses. Regarding its Chicago Stores, the retailer said they have not been profitable since they were first opened nearly 17 years ago.
In rough figures, the retailer estimates the loss from the Chicago stores to be over tens of millions of dollars a year, doubling their annual losses in the last five years.
In the closure announcement released on April 11, the national retailer said they had tried several "different strategies to improve the business performance" of their Chicago stores. From investing "hundreds of millions of dollars in the city" to upgrading stores and creating a Walmart Academy Training Center, none of the efforts were useful in improving the fundamental business challenges for the stores.
Forced to take a major step, the retailer finally announced the closure of four stores in different Chicago regions. Closing down on April 16, the list of the four Chicago stores that will no longer be able to serve customers includes:
- #5781 Chatham Supercenter, the Walmart Health center, and the Walmart Academy, 8431 S. Stewart Ave.
- #3166 Kenwood Neighborhood Market, 4720 S. Cottage Grove Ave.
- #5645 Lakeview Neighborhood Market, 2844 N. Broadway St.
- #5646 Little Village Neighborhood Market, 2551 W. Cermak Road
While the stores shut down on April 16, pharmacies at these four locations will remain up and running for the next 30 days to serve patients. The retailer also said that all employees affected by the closure can transfer to a nearby Walmart or Sam's Club store.
Although the four stores are closing, customers across Chicago will still be able to access the four remaining stores: Auburn Gresham Neighborhood Market at 7535 S. Ashland Ave., Hermosa Neighborhood Market at 4650 W. North Ave., W. Supercenter in Pullman at 10900 S. Doty Ave., and the Belmont Gardens Neighborhood Market at 2844 N. Broadway St.
Founded on July 2, 1962, Walmart is an American multinational chain of grocery stores. Headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas, the chain has over 10,586 stores (2022) across the globe. From simple groceries to everyday use tools and other essentials, the grocery store chain serves customers through store shopping, pick-up, and deliveries.
