Walmart has announced plans to close a total of 269 stores across the globe. This revelation comes after a worldwide review that looked at both the financial results and strategic alignment with long-term plans of its various outlets.
The U.S. retailer will shut down a total of 154 locations in the U.S., including its 102 “Walmart Express” stores, which it had been piloting since 2011. It will also close 12 Supercenters, 23 Neighborhood Markets, seven Puerto Rican stores, four Sam’s Clubs and six discount centers.
“Actively managing our portfolio of assets is essential to maintaining a healthy business,” says Doug McMillon, Walmart’s president and chief executive officer. “It’s important to remember that we’ll open well more than 300 stores around the world next year. So we are committed to growing, but we are being disciplined about it.”
The threatened outlets comprise less than 1 percent of Walmart’s global square footage and revenue. With these closures, the departmental store chain plans to optimize Neighborhood Markets, grow the e-commerce business, strengthen its Supercenters, and expand its pickup services. CJ
