Target Corp. (Minneapolis) said it will close nine stores in four states next month due to alleged theft and organized crime as well as concerns over staff safety. The stores are in the Portland, Ore., and San Francisco markets (three stores each), Seattle (two stores) and New York (one).
“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,” the retailer said in a press release. “With that said, we have made the difficult decision to close nine Target stores across four states, effective Oct. 21.
“In this case, 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. We know that our stores serve an important role in their communities, but we can only be successful if the working and shopping environment is safe for all.”
Here are the stores to be closed and the number of remaining stores Target has in each area:
San Francisco/Oakland:
• San Francisco, Folsom and 13th St.; Oakland, Broadway & 27th; and Pittsburg, 4301 Century Blvd., leaving 32 stores in the market.
Portland, Ore.:
• Galleria: 939 SW Morrison St.; Powell, 3031 SE Powell Blvd.; and Hollywood: 4030 NE Halsey St., leaving 15 stores there.
Seattle:
• University Way: 4535 University Way NE, and Ballard: 1448 NW Market St, Ste 100, leaving 22 stores in the market.
New York City:
• Harlem: 517 E 117th St.; leaving 96 stores there.
The retailer noted that before deciding to close the above stores, it “invested heavily in strategies to prevent and stop theft and organized retail crime in our stores, such as adding more security team members, using third-party guard services, and implementing theft-deterrent tools across our business. Despite our efforts, unfortunately, we continue to face fundamental challenges to operating these stores safely and successfully.”
Target said employees affected by the closures will have the opportunity to transfer to other stores.
In May, Target CEO Brian Cornell said store theft could drain the retailer an additional $500 million in profits this year compared to last.