Bed Bath & Beyond Led National Chain Closures In Virginia In 2023

VIRGINIA — Several national discount, department store and specialty chains closed locations in Virginia in 2023 as they grappled with inflationary pressures, filed for bankruptcy or adjusted their business models to reflect changes in consumer shopping habits.

Others, including pharmacy giants CVS, Walgreens and Rite Aid, closed stores as demand for COVID-19-related services declined. And Target blamed the closure of a handful of metropolitan stores on a spike in organized retail crime.

Here’s a look at how some of the announcements affected Virginia:

Bed Bath & Beyond came back from the dead in digital form after Overstock.com acquired $21.5 million in intellectual property assets from the beleaguered chain. Still, the chain planned to shutter 896 stores as part of its bankruptcy filing, according to NBC News. The closures included 360 flagship stores, 120 Buy Buy Baby stores, and 416 Bed Bath & Beyond, Harmon and Buy Buy Baby stores that were set to close.

Read more: Bed Bath & Beyond Files For Bankruptcy, VA Closing Sales Start

In August, the new owners of Buy Buy Baby, announced plans to reopen 11 stores in the Northeast, and the new owner of the health and beauty chain Harmon said it would reopen at least five stores, CNBC reported.

Buy Buy Baby reopened its Springfield, Virginia, store in November. The location celebrated its resurrection with free gift cards, prizes, and a gift bag.

Read more: Springfield Buy Buy Baby Store Celebrates Reopening

Foot Locker said it would shutter 545 stores, including 125 of its Champs Sports locations by 2026, as part of a “reset” that includes opening about 300 “new concept” stores, according to Business Insider.

Foot Locker has not specified whether any Virginia stores will be shuttered. Locally, there are Foot Locker locations in Alexandria, Woodbridge, Fredericksburg, and Springfield.

In February, Dallas-based discount home goods retailer Tuesday Morning announced plans to shutter half its stores amid bankruptcy, but then said in April it would close all of its stores. In all, 487 stores were affected.

Tuesday Morning's 12 Virginia stores all closed, including locations in Woodbridge, Alexandria, Manassas, and West Springfield.

Read more: Tuesday Morning Store Closings Could Affect 12 In Virginia

The Boston-based seasonal specialty retailer Christmas Tree Shops cited slowing demand, inflation and rising interest rates in its May bankruptcy filing. The chain, which previously had closed 10 stores, said it was going out of business and would close its remaining 72 locations in 20 states.

The closures also affected the chain's "and That!" locations. The "and That!" store in the Potomac Mills mall permanently closed in June.

Read more: And That! To Permanently Close At Potomac Mills Mall

Party City filed for bankruptcy in January, announced in February it would shutter 22 store closures, and added another nine to the list in April. Virginia's 21 Party City locations were not affected.

Best Buy said it would close between 20 and 30 big box stores in 2023, while opening eight smaller concept and 10 outlet stores. The company did not say what specific stores would close, but typically closes between 15 and 20 a year, Business Insider reported.

Target blamed organized retail crime in a September announcement of nine store closures in the New York, San Francisco, Seattle and Portland, Oregon, areas. Previously, Target closed four stores with declining foot traffic — one each in Philadelphia and its hometown of Minneapolis and two in Washington, D.C.

Lidl, the German discount grocery chain, closed 11 of its 170 U.S. stores in six states, citing underperformance. Lidl opened stores in Washington, D.C., and Greensboro, North Carolina, and planned to open another in Brooklyn, New York.

Lidl closed stores in Charlottesville and Richmond in 2023.

More CVS stores closed as the company adjusts its business plan to reflect changing populations and buying patterns. CVS is in the second year of the three-year plan to close 900 stores by the end of 2024.

In 2021, CVS operated 355 stores in Virginia. In 2023, there were still 354 CVS locations in the state, according to the brand's website. A CVS in Lynchburg closed this fall.

Struggling under slumping sales and heavy debt from opioid-related litigation, the Rite Aid drugstore chain said in October it was accelerating the closure of some underperforming drugstores while it restructures under Chapter 11 bankruptcy. In all, 154 locations were affected. A month later, Rite Aid said it was closing 31 more stores. In all, 185 locations were affected.

Rite Aid stores in Norfolk and Williamsburg are now set to close.

Read more: Rite Aid Closing 2 More VA Locations As Bankruptcy Looms

Walgreens plans to close 150 stores by the end of August 2024, the Deerfield, Illinois-based drugstore chain said in June, citing slowing demand for COVID-19-related services among other factors. Walgreens did not say which among its 9,000 stores nationwide would close.