Maryland Chain Retailers That Closed Stores In 2019

MARYLAND — What some have dubbed the retail apocalypse changed the landscape of many Maryland malls and shopping districts in 2019. Several national chains announced closures of stores this year, which will mean big changes to the way some consumers shop.

A growing list of brick-and-mortar establishments have seen their revenue and popularity plummet with the emergence of e-commerce companies such as Amazon and Walmart. Retailers affected range from clothing stores like Forever 21, Dress Barn and Lord & Taylor, to home decor chains Pier 21 and Bed Bath & Beyond.

Here are some of the big chains that announced they were closing stores in Maryland this year.

A.C. Moore
In November, craft supply store A.C. Moore announced it was closing all of its stores. The arts and crafts supplier operates at least ten stores in Maryland. Under the transition, as many as 40 A.C. Moore stores will become Michaels. The locations to become Michaels have not yet been named

Forever 21
In late September, clothing retailer Forever 21 announced that it was filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and would be closing five stores in Maryland. The apparel retailer had 11 stores in Maryland and these are expected to close: Towson Town Center: 825 Dulaney Valley Road, Towson; Ellsworth Place: 8661 Colesville Road, Silver Spring; Tanger Ocean City: 12741 Ocean Gateway, Ocean City; Montgomery Mall: 7101 Democracy Blvd., Bethesda; Wheaton Mall: 11160 Veirs Mills Road, Silver Spring. Read more.

Avenue
The women's clothing store is closing more than 200 locations across the country, including all eight stores in Maryland. Read more.

Walgreens

The national pharmacy chain will be closing 200 stores in 2019, the company said in an August SEC filing. A list of locations to close was not released by the company.

Sears/Kmart
The iconic Sears brand, along with Kmart, are both owned by the same company and it continued to close stores in 2019, shuttering two more in the state this year. The Cumberland Sears store at 1262 Vocke Road was on a closing list posted last month by USAToday. And Kmart locations in Frederick, Hagerstown and Hyattsville are on the closing list in Maryland, the newspaper reports. In September, the newspaper reported coming store closings would include: Gaithersburg Sears: 701 Russell Ave. and Stevensville Kmart: 200 Kent Manor Drive. Read more.

Lord & Taylor

Lord & Taylor said goodbye to Gaithersburg's Lakeforest Mall. The fashion retailer closed its doors for good on Sept. 15, according to Washington Business Journal. The department store filed a Work Adjustment and Retraining Notification notice with the state of Maryland that said about 75 workers would be affected.

JCPenney
One-time retail giant JCPenney shuttered the struggling Lakeforest Mall in Gaithersburg, according to the Washington Business Journal. The store closing affected 113 employees. Read more.

Dressbarn
This year, Dressbarn announced it was going out of business. That means it shuttered all 22 of its stores in Maryland as part of a shutdown of 650 stores nationwide. Dressbarn had stores in Baltimore, Bel Air, Gambrills, Germantown, Greenbelt, Hanover, Laurel, Severna Park, Silver Spring, Timonium and Upper Marlboro among other locations in the state. Read more.

Bed Bath & Beyond
In October, home retailer Bed Bath & Beyond announced that it would be closing 60 stores. The Owings Mills location is closed Nov. 1 because its lease is expiring, according to the business. In an earnings call in early October, Bed, Bath & Beyond reported more than 400 leases would be expiring in the next couple of years, which would be a factor in additional closures. There are 19 locations of the chain in Maryland. Read more.

Gymboree
Children's clothing retailer Gymboree filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in January. Under the bankruptcy plan, the retail chain closed more than 800 Gymboree and Crazy 8 stores. The company tried to save its 140 upscale Janie and Jack stores. Read more.

Payless ShoeSource

Payless ShoeSource closed all 2,300 of its U.S. stores as part of a bankruptcy filing. Maryland locations included Harford Mall and White Marsh Mall. Read more.

Family Dollar
Nearly 400 Family Dollar stores closed nationwide this year, while another 200 were converted to Dollar Tree, which purchased the rival chain in 2015. There were about 90 Family Dollar stores in Maryland. Other Family Dollars will keep their name will be stocked with $1 Dollar Tree merchandise and alcohol sections. Read more.

Charlotte Russe

A month after it filed for bankruptcy, the women's clothing company Charlotte Russe decided to shutter all of its stores. Stores marked for closing including one at the Columbia mall, Wheaton Mall, and White Marsh Mall. Read more.

Pier 1
The home wares and furnishings chain has plans to close 57 stores by the end of 2019, USA Today reported. A list of locations was not released by the company.

Charming Charlie
Women's fashion accessory retailer Charming Charlie filed for bankruptcy and closed roughly 260 stores across the country, including five in Maryland. Read more.

Other store closings announced this year include 11 Maryland Mattress Firm stores.