Target Permanently Closes Nine Stores Nationwide Due to Rising Organized Retail Crime

Target Corporation announced the permanent closure of nine stores in four US states due to significant losses from organized retail crime and theft, affecting multiple metropolitan areas nationwide.

Target shared this plan on Tuesday, Sept. 26. It said that the closure of the stores is permanent and will take effect on Oct. 21. The affected locations include two in Seattle, three in the San Francisco-Oakland area, one in New York City’s Harlem district, and three in Portland, Oregon.

According to CNBC, Target operates about 2,000 outlets in the United States and has spoken out about organized retail crime and thefts at its establishments. The company lamented that the incidence of theft had resulted in high levels of decline as it lost items it sold, plus many were damaged or misplaced.

Before this announcement of store closures, Target’s chief executive officer, Brian Cornell, said during the second quarter earnings report in May that organized retail crime had targeted its stores. He further stated that the losses from the offenses are expected to diminish Target’s full-year profitability by over $500 million compared to the same period of the previous 2022.

In any case, Cornell said that deciding to close the stores was difficult because they did not want to do this. He stressed they were reluctant, but there was no other way.

“We do not want to close stores,” Cornell told the media in May. “We know how important our stores are. They create local jobs, they generate taxes, they’re very important for those local shoppers, and they play a critical role in communities across the country.”

In its latest press release for the permanent shutdowns, the company said, “At Target, we take the decision to close stores very seriously and only do so after taking meaningful steps to invest in the guest experience and improve business performance. We cannot continue operating these stores because theft and organized retail crime are threatening the safety of our team and guests, and contributing to unsustainable business performance.”

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