Stop & Shop to Shut 32 Grocery Stores in 5 States

People shop at a grocery store in New York City on March 21, 2024. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times)

Supermarket chain Stop & Shop will close almost three dozen “underperforming” stores across the country this year.

The 32 stores are expected to be shut down on or before Nov. 2, while the chain will continue operating more than 350 stores across five states, the company said in a July 12 press release.

Five of the closures are in Connecticut, eight in Massachusetts, ten in New Jersey, seven in New York, and two in Rhode Island.

“As we announced in May, Stop & Shop has evaluated its overall store portfolio and made the difficult decision to close underperforming stores to create a healthy base for the future growth of our brand,” said Gordon Reid, president of Stop & Shop.

After the closures are completed, Stop & Shop will retain 115 stores in Massachusetts, 91 in New York, 81 stores in Connecticut, 47 in New Jersey, and 25 in Rhode Island.

The firm employs 54,000 people across the United States. Stop & Shop said that associates impacted by closures will be offered other opportunities within the company.

“Our associates are a strong community dedicated to growing and working together, and all of our store associates will continue to have a place in the Stop & Shop family as we look forward to serving customers at other nearby locations,” Mr. Reid said.

While Stop & Shop has committed to shutting down stores by November, the firm has not revealed the exact dates of the closures. The retail chain claims it will “communicate specific store closing dates to local customers well in advance of any store closures.”

The company said it has completed over 190 store remodels since 2018, with these stores outperforming others that are yet to be remodeled.

Stop & Shop is owned by food retail group Ahold Delhaize based in The Netherlands. In May, Ahold Delhaize introduced its “Growing Together” strategy.

At the time, CEO JJ Fleeman said the firm planned to “strengthen the market position for each of our brands, including the revitalization of Stop & Shop.”

Store Shutdowns

Multiple other retail outlets have announced store closures over the past months. Discount retail chain Big Lots said in a recent filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that it plans to shut down 35 to 40 stores this year.

The company said it expects “to experience further operating losses” this year due to ongoing negative macroeconomic factors.

During an investor earnings call in late June, Walgreens Boots Alliance announced significant store closures in the coming years.

A review conducted by the company found that almost 100 percent of the firm’s adjusted operating income from the health care segment came from 75 percent of its stores in the country. The remaining 25 percent of stores are at risk of being shut down.

“We are finalizing a multi-factor store footprint optimization program, which we expect will include the closure of a significant portion of these underperforming stores over the next three years,” CEO Tim Wentworth said.

While some businesses are closing their stores due to underperformance, others are opting to file for bankruptcy amid tight financial conditions.

Apparel retailer Bob’s Stores recently filed for bankruptcy and announced the shuttering of all stores nationwide, citing difficulty in maintaining operations after its primary lender pulled its funding.

Specialty fashion retailer Rue21 filed for bankruptcy in May. In April, Express Inc., which dealt in casual office attire, filed for bankruptcy. In addition, fabrics and crafts retailer Joann and cosmetics brand The Body Shop also ceased operations in the United States.

In the first half of 2024, Chapter 11 bankruptcy filings by commercial entities rose by 34 percent compared to the same period last year.

Michael Hunter, vice president of bankruptcy filing data provider Epiq AACER, said in a June statement that high interest rates and rising operational expenses are straining business profitability.