As Many as 25,000 U.S. Stores May Close in 2020, Mostly in Malls

(Bloomberg) — As many as 25,000 U.S. stores could close permanently this year after the coronavirus pandemic devastated an industry where many mall-based retailers were already struggling.

© Bloomberg A worker wearing a protective mask and gloves cleans an entrance door at the Yuba Sutter Mall in Yuba City, California, U.S., on Wednesday, May 13, 2020. Yuba Sutter Mall is the first mall in California to re-open, after California’s attorney general, Xavier Becerra, said in an interview Wednesday morning that the state is prepared to enforce its stay-at-home rules if needed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.Nick Bit: this shit won’t work… its all a show!

The number would shatter the record set in 2019, when more than 9,800 stores closed their doors for good, according to a report from retail and tech data firm Coresight Research. Most of the closures are expected to occur in malls, with department stores and clothing shops predicted to be among the hardest hit. “If the anchor tenants close stores in the mall, other tenants are likely to follow suit,” Coresight Chief Executive Officer Deborah Weinswig said in the report, which put the expected range at 20,000 to 25,000. “Department and large apparel-chain store closures in malls will therefore create a ripple effect that spells bad news for malls.”

The U.S. has the most retail selling space per capita of any country and the lowest sales per square feet, according to commercial real estate company Cushman & Wakefield.

Most retailers have been reluctant to shrink their store networks, but the pandemic has forced many to rewrite their playbooks. American retailers went dark in mid-March in response to the Covid-19 outbreak, and — even though states are now beginning to ease restrictions — many shops are still shuttered or only providing limited service. As of June 5, retailers have planned about 4,000 permanent store closures, including hundreds by J.C. Penney, Victoria’s Secret and Pier 1 Imports. In March, before the extent and duration of the virus lockdown was clear, Coresight estimated that about 15,000 stores would shutter in 2020. Alongside the closures, the firm expects to see another spate of bankruptcies as debt-laden retailers are pushed over the edge. Fifteen major retailers have already filed this year. Nick Note: The last time I was in a mall I “Drove” around the fountain when i got in as they were changing the shit box Prias on display. The last time i Tried to get into a mall they blocked the entrance with a garbage truck. We came to a truce that i was barred from the mall forever.  It was for the best. Because that mall is now closed and entering receivership. I would love to buy it, fire that blue shirted security ashole ,,,,,,,, If i  can steal it and turn it into a retirement village. The municipal has approached me (as they often do) about just such a project. I am a bit of a legend since I predicted this and put in a clinic. Let me define Legend: The crazy guy on Rancho Perro who never leaves the compound (except to raise hell), has solar panels all over the place, Satellite dishes  over the buildings that are either wooden shacks with zinc roofs  or converted shipping containers. As you know we are not so crazy as the assholes laughed at us. Now watch as their lives turn to shit. The FUCKING millennial’s never wanted for anything…. Now they will want for everything.  As i have been warning you for years  brick and mortar retailers and office cubicals were destined to go the way of the wooden wagon wheel. The  pandemic just accelerated their demise. Hear me well this ain’t over yet. Beware of the second wave the third, fourth and fifth. GOD is pissed!