Popular Stores That Are Closing Locations in 2022

Shopping malls are a thing of the past and unfortunately, many of the stores that you used to see in those malls have become relics too. Some retailers that used to be in every major city in America have closed all of their locations in the past few years in favor of online sales.

If you haven’t seen a Zales, Gap or Sears around in a while, you can be pretty sure that they’ve moved their business online.

Thanks to retailers like Amazon, customers are proving that they’d rather shop online than set foot in a store, so many of these classic brands have closed for business.

Chipotle

While many people still regularly visit this restaurant chain, not many are aware that Chipotle has been suffering greatly. Its first location was opened in 1993, and it instantly became a hit among consumers. However, Chipotle found itself in a challenging situation due to rising health concerns.

Fewer and fewer customers began visiting Chipotle, and their sales have dropped rapidly. Between 2019 and 2020, 65 of their locations have closed across the country.

GNC

GNC was the place to stock up on wellness products like supplements, vitamins and energy drinks, but nowadays you won’t see many of these stores left in big cities.

The company closed around 1,000 of their nearly 4,000 locations in 2021 and most of their most successful locations were in malls across the country, which have also been performing poorly lately.

Kohl’s

The department store chain has been doing a lot to revamp their image in recent years, like carrying clothing designed by high-fashion designers and celebrities, but it hasn’t been enough to secure its fate.

Sales were down around 40% in the first quarter of 2021 and Brookfield Asset Management, the owners of competitor JCPenney, put in an offer to buy the company that ultimately fell through due to a decrease in sales caused by inflation.

McDonald’s

McDonald’s obviously isn’t closing for good anytime soon, but the fast food brand that is known around the world is quietly closing “low volume” locations by the hundreds.

Costs have increased for the fast food brand following the pandemic to implement new health and safety regulations, which has eaten into profits.