In 2024, we've had business closing reports every week of every month so far. We're constantly being hit with stories of restaurant chains, department stores, hardware stores, flooring stores, and discount stores that are closing some, many, or all of their locations for a variety of reasons:

  • Unchecked retail theft
  • Unsustainable leases and rent costs
  • Loss of business due to internet competition
  • Inability to hire and/or retain good workers
  • Too many locations for the company to realize a profit

Drugstores are also in the same boat. Rite-Aid is just emerging from bankruptcy, and their total store count has dropped to 1,300 locations. CVS Pharmacy is at the tail-end of a 3-year process in which they planned to close up to 900 of their locations.

Now, the biggest player of them all (and headquartered in Illinois) when it comes to pharmacies has announced that they're going to close 1,200 stores.

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Walgreens, Headquartered In Deerfield, Illinois Operates Almost 9,000 Locations Throughout The United States, And Has Over 12,000 Locations Around The World

However, sooner rather than later, 1,200 Walgreens locations around the country and including the state of Illinois, will be looking at being permanently closed. The announcement comes on the heels of news that Walgreens lost around $3 billion in the last quarter.

CBS News:

Another $3 billion in losses this quarter led to the announcement from Walgreens' CEO Tim Wentworth. "We have over 8,000 stores, of which the majority – approximately 6,000 – are profitable," he said.

Walgreens plans to close 1,200 stores over the next three years, prioritizing poor-performing stores, although the Deerfield-based company didn't say which ones. Wentworth said Walgreens plans to "redeploy" the majority of affected workers to other stores.

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1,200 Walgreens Stores Being Targeted For Closing Shouldn't Come As A Huge Surprise Because The Company Warned That This Could Happen Back In June

The parent company, Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc., announced in June of this year that they were in the concluding stages of putting together what they called a "turnaround plan," and that the plan might involve the closure of hundreds and hundreds of Walgreens locations.

Tuesday's announcement of 1,200 planned store closures shows that they weren't kidding around.

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Walgreens Hasn't Released The Locations That Are Going To Be Permanently Closed Just Yet, So We Don't Know Which Illinois Locations We're Going To Lose...But We Will Soon Enough

According to their announcement, Walgreens plans to get started with the store closings fairly quickly.

The initial phase of the closings plan involves shuttering 500 Walgreens stores in fiscal 2025, which just began on September 29th of this year and will end on September 27th, 2025. 700 or more store closings will follow over the next two years.

LOOK: 20 Outside-the-Box Uses for Vacant Big-Box Stores

When a big-box store shuts down, its closure can significantly affect the local community and its economy. In numerous instances, the emphasis has shifted from traditional retail to more experiential opportunities. Let's explore 20 innovative businesses and services that can make the most of these adaptable spaces.

Gallery Credit: Stephen Lenz

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