140 Stride Rite Stores to Close

Wolverine World Wide Inc. (Rockford, Mich.), parent company of the Stride Rite brand, has announced that it will close up to 140 of the children’s shoe stores over the next 18 months. According to The Wall Street Journal, the company will invest the $11 million in annual savings in its e-commerce efforts.

In a recent conference call with investors, Blake Krueger, chairman, president and ceo of Wolverine World Wide said, “Consumers have embraced the ease and convenience of online shopping, a trend that has only accelerated for the last several quarters …Today’s consumers demand a sophisticated omni-channel shopping experience and have the available technology to make informed shopping and purchasing decisions.”