Walgreens to Close 1200 Stores by 2027

Walgreens Boots Alliance (Deerfield, Ill.) plans to close roughly 1200 of its U.S. flagship brand’s stores over the next three years, including about 500 in fiscal 2025. The pharmacy giant’s CEO disclosed that news during an analysts’ call on the company’s fourth-quarter results, report a variety of news sources, including CNBC.com.

Though its year-end results were mainly positive, they nonetheless cap a rocky fiscal 2024 for Walgreens, which is grappling with pharmacy reimbursement pressure, softer consumer spending and challenges related to its push into primary care, CNBC noted.

The closures will give Walgreens a “healthier store base” and “will enable us to respond to shifts in consumer behavior and buying preferences,” CEO Tim Wentworth said during an earnings call. He added that Walgreens aims to continue employing most of the workforce affected by the closures.

In June, Walgreens disclosed plans to close a significant number of its underperforming stores by 2027. This latest announcement appears to be the company’s first exact estimate of how many locations it will shutter, CNBC said.

Walgreens has about 8700 locations in the U.S., a quarter of which it says are unprofitable.