Weekly Store Openings and Closures Tracker 2018 #34: Lowe’s to Close Orchard Supply Stores; House of Fraser London Flagship to Remain Open

Coresight Research tracks news about store closures and openings, bankruptcies and management changes. Our Weekly Store Openings and Closures Tracker focuses on department stores and specialty retail, including, but not limited to, softlines, hardlines, consumer electronics, grocery and furniture.

2018 Major US Store Openings and Closures

Year-to-date 2018, the number of US store closure announcements stands at 4,478 and the number of store openings is 2,372.

What Is Happening this Week in the US?

L’Occitane to Open New Flagship Store in New York

Premium beauty brand L’Occitane will open its new store on Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue in New York City. The store has dedicated an area to social media where it will feature a live video feed of its US Instagram account. Shoppers can also get a massage at the retailer’s new concept store. This is the second concept store opened by L’Occitane; the other one is in Paris.

Whole Foods Market to Open New Store in Houston

Whole Foods Market opened its first Houston, Texas 365 concept store on August 22. The 365 concept is budget oriented and the company has opened only 10 such stores nationally. The new store offers natural and organic products at low prices as well as has two restaurants.

Land’s End Opens First Store in New York

Clothing and home decor company Land’s End has opened its first New York store. The company plans to shut its shops-in-shops in Sears stores and aims to open new outlet stores. Land’s End has opened three stores out of the four to six stores that it plans to open this year.

Lowe’s to Close All Orchard Supply Hardware Stores

Lowe’s announced that it will permanently shut all 99 stores of its subsidiary Orchard Supply Hardware by the end of the fiscal year. Lowe’s said that it plans “to exit these operations in order to focus on its core home improvement business.” In 2013, Orchard filed for bankruptcy and was bought by Lowe’s.

Non-Store-Closure News

Best Buy Announces Acquisition of GreatCall Inc.

Consumer electronics retailer Best Buy announced on August 15 that it is acquiring GreatCall Inc., a health services provider, for $800 million. This acquisition will help Best Buy to expand its services in the healthcare sector. The company plans to use its technology to improve the quality of life of the aging population. The transaction is expected to close by the end of Best Buy’s fiscal 2019 third quarter.

Year-to-Date 2018 Major US Store Bankruptcies

2017 Major US Store Openings and Closures

2017 Major US Store Bankruptcies

2018 Major UK Store Openings and Closures

Year to date in the UK, there have been 1,195 store closure announcements and 692 store opening announcements.

What Is Happening this Week in the UK?

House of Fraser London Flagship Store to Remain Open

House of Fraser’s flagship store on Oxford Street, London, has been saved from closure. The news follows the negotiations between the landlord and House of Fraser’s new owner, Sports Direct. Mike Ashley, the owner of Sports Direct, aims to keep 80% of House of Fraser stores open. The expected closure of 12 House of Fraser stores is lower than the previously planned total of 31, and we have revised our total in the graph below.

Arket Opens Its First Store in Liverpool

H&M has opened an 8,600 sq. ft. Arket store in Liverpool One; this is the fifth store since the brand was launched in the UK last year.

2017 Major UK Store Openings and Closures