2019 has left the U.S. with a record 9,300 stores closed

New York - Retailers announced more than 9,300 store closures this year, a 63 percent increase from 2018, when more than 5,700 stores closed. 2017 marked the previous store-closure record, with 8,000 shops closing for good.

According to global retail advisory and research firm Coresight Research, a record number of retail stores closed in 2019, putting a dramatic end to a decade of dramatic changes to consumer preferences as a result of online shopping that roiled the industry.

Some analysts have been pointing out as of late that this was a long-due process for the industry. “Even without the advent of online, there would be this reckoning,” Michael Brown, a retail practice partner with the global management consulting firm A.T. Kearny, told NBC News. “What online has done is make it really expensive to continue operating a large store base, and with a competitive online experience there had to be a rationalization for the number of stores and the role they played.”

Bankruptcies have led store closures

For many retailers, bankruptcy and store closures have been seen as an opportunity to right-size their store footprints and mitigate ramping costs of real estate and logistics. This has been the case for Payless ShoeSource, which filed for bankruptcy in February for the second time and shut down all 2,500 of its North American stores. The company struggled with massive debt and said supplier delays forced it to sell its inventory at deep discounts. That was also the case for accessories chain Charming Charlie filed for bankruptcy in July and said it will close 261 of its stores by the end of August after failing to come up with a viability plan.

Similarly, Charlotte Russell also filed for bankruptcy and said it would close 94 stores, although its new owner, U.S. fashion house YM, plans to relaunch 100 new locations across the country. Barneys New York plans to close 15 out of its 22 stores as part of its bankruptcy. Authentic Brands, which acquired the New York department store chain from administrators, plans to open a pop-up shop in the summer of 2020 on Madison Avenue in New York City to give the company “an opportunity to attract a new customer that they don’t necessarily have today.”

On the bright side, data shows that despite the reduced store traffic, retail sales are becoming more valuable. Between January and December 20, retail store traffic was down by about 5 percent and net sales were down by around 2 percent; but the average transaction amount increased by nearly 3 percent and the sales value per shopper increased by about 3 percent, according to RetailNext.

Photo: Payless Shoe Source, Oregon. Credits: John Margolies via flickr