Source: Foot Locker / Foot Locker Inc.
Getting your hands on a coveted pair of sneakers is about to get a lot tougher as Foot Locker is expected to close up shop at hundred of their mall spots in the near future.
Sneakernews is reporting that Foot Locker is planning on shutting down up to 400 brick and mortar stores by 2026 as online shopping has been the preferred method of purchasing merchandise by customers for the past few years. The stores expected to close their doors will be those located in malls and those that are “underperforming” and replacing them with a new “format” going forward. What that will look like is anyone’s guess but we’re interested in seeing what exactly they have in mind for Foot Locker’s future.
According to Crain’s Detroit Business reporter Jay Davis, Foot Locker has already begun this initiative, shuttering sites at the Lakeside Mall and Eastland Mall before opening a large-scale store across the street.
What’s more, Foot Locker will continue to cultivate their partnership with Nike, the company’s “largest brand partner” according to CEO Mary Dillon. Dillon adds that her and the team have “spent a great deal of time with Nike revitalizing [their] partnership,” with results expected to be seen by the Holiday Season.
And to think not too long ago there were rumors that Nike would be pulling their merchandise from Foot Locker in order to cut out the middle man and sell their products directly to consumers for a bigger profit margin. Now that we know that’s not the case, Foot Locker is looking to reboot their business practices and attempting to court a younger and more diverse base of customers as they expect sales to drop 3.5% to 5.5% in 2023.
Still, we’ve seen the effect that online shopping has had on brick-and-mortar stores for the past decade as more and more businesses are calling it quits and leaving once thriving commercial avenues looking like ghost towns.
Still, Foot Locker will still have 2400 stores operating after their plan is fully executed so there will still be plenty of raffles and L’s to go around come 2026.
What do y’all think of Foot Locker
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