The trend: Major chains like Claire’s, Kroger, and At Home are shuttering locations in response to mounting cost pressures, shifting consumer behaviors, and overextended store networks.

By the numbers: Roughly 6,000 stores closed in the first half of 2025, vacating 123.7 million square feet of retail space, per Coresight Research.

• That dwarfs the 3,960 new store locations announced occupying just 74.5 million of retail square feet.
• The challenging environment is in line with Coresight’s forecast earlier this year that predicted a net loss of 9,200 store locations by year end.

Case in point: Claire’s offers a prime example of how converging headwinds are leading to a major uptick in store closures.

• The mall accessories and ear-piercing chain plans to shutter at least 700 stores, including all of its Walmart shop-in-shops and Icing stores, in the wake of its second bankruptcy filing in the last seven years. If it can’t find a buyer, it could liquidate its entire 1,500 North American store fleet.
• While Claire’s navigated through the pandemic, battled declining mall traffic and competition from low-priced online competitors like Shein and Temu, and on-trend rivals like Lovisa, tariffs dealt a final blow.
• With nearly three-quarters of its inventory coming from overseas, mostly China, the retailer’s costs soared. As of June 23, its estimated cost of goods sold are set to increase by some $30 million due to higher tariffs, per court filings.
• To offset those higher costs, Claire’s raised prices and shifted its inventory, which ultimately pushed sales lower.

Retailers filing for bankruptcy aren’t the only ones closing stores; Kroger in June announced plans to shutter around 60 underperforming locations across the country in the next 18 months as part of a profitability push.

The exceptions: Given the challenging environment in which consumers feel pressed, it should come as no surprise that the discount sector accounts for the largest share of store growth this year, with roughly 1,253 stores in 2025, about a third (30%) of total openings.