Inspiration Gallery
Thom McAn was a chain of shoe stores that had over 1,400 stores at its peak in the 1960s. The chain had closed by 1996, but Thom McAn shoes continued to be available at Sears and Kmart.AP Photo/Justin IdeSource: The Wall Street JournalKinney Shoes opened in 1894. It had 467 stores at its peak, all of which shuttered in 1998.Glen Martin/The Denver Post via Getty ImagesSource: LA TimesIn 1992, Blockbuster acquired the Sound Warehouse and Music Plus music chains and created Blockbuster Music. The chain was sold to Wherehouse entertainment in 1998 before closing for good.GettySource: BuzzFeedWarner Bros.
Studio Store competed with the Disney store until the company closed all of its locations in 2001.Justin Sullivan / Getty ImagesSource: Business InsiderZany Brainy stores filed for bankruptcy in 2001, and the educational toy retailer's founder, David Schlessinger, co-founded the discount company Five Below.Dan Loh/APSource: Business InsiderAmes Department Store had more than 700 locations, but debt and poor sales forced it into bankruptcy twice. In 2002, the remaining Ames stores closed.WikimediaSource: The New York TimesImaginarium was an educational toy store in the 1980s. Stores started closing in the 1990s, and by 2003, its parent company, Toys R Us, had closed them all.AP Photo/Jeff ZelevanskySource: Business InsiderHecht's Department Store was founded in 1857. In 2005, the chain was purchased by Macy's and all locations were either turned into Macy's stores or closed.AP Photo/Gerald HerbertSource: The Baltimore SunFederated Department Stores bought Marshall Field's in 2005 and converted the stores to the company's more recognizable flagship brand, Macy's.AP Photo/Nam Y.
HuhSource: The New York TimesGadzooks was a teen clothing store that was around from 1983 to 2005. It filed for bankruptcy in its final year and was purchased by Forever 21, which then closed all of the stores.GettySource: BuzzfeedKaufmann's was a department store that had 44 locations at its peak. In 2006, Macy's retired the name, and the brand disappeared.AP Photo/Keith SrakocicSource: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Tower Records was one of the largest record stores in the 1990s, but it couldn't keep up with the rise of digital music. All Tower Records stores in the US were closed in 2006.GettySource: The GuardianDiscovery Channel stores sold educational books, videos, and gifts, but all 103 standalone stores closed in 2007.AP Photo/Terry GilliamSource: Denver PostK·B Toys operated over 1,300 stores across all 50 states.
The chain announced it would be going out of business in 2008, and by early 2009 all locations were closed.AP/Damian DovarganesSource: BuzzfeedSharper Image declared bankruptcy in 2008. But the company still sells merchandise through its website, catalog, and third-party retail partners.Eric Risberg/APSource: Business InsiderLevitz Furniture was founded way back in 1910. It declared bankruptcy twice — first in 1997, and then in 2005. It closed all of its stores in 2008.Wikicommons/Laurie AvocadoSource: Business InsiderLinens 'n Things had over 500 stores in 2006, but by the end of 2008, they were all closed.
The company still does business online.GettySource: The Seattle TimesMervyn's was a California-based department store founded in 1949 that had almost 200 locations in the western US. In 2008, the company declared bankruptcy and closed all of its stores.AP Photo/Ben MargotSource: The LA TimesLimited Too, The Limited's children's store, launched in 1987. Its success began dwindling in the early 2000s, and all Limited Too stores were eventually rebranded as Justice by 2008.A girl shops at a New York Limited Too store in 2006. Associated PressSource: BustleTweeter was an electronics chain that started in 1972, but all of its stores were closed by the end of 2008.Flickr/Dalvenjah FoxFireSource: ReutersCircuit City had 567 stores in 2008.
By 2009, they were all closed.GettySource: The New York TimesSteve & Barry's sold inexpensive sportswear for teens. It closed all of its stores in 2009.AP Photo/Mark LennihanSource: BuzzfeedBoston-based Filene's Department Store went bankrupt in 2009, and there are no more brick-and-mortar locations left.AP Photo/Lisa PooleSource: New York TimesFilene's Basement was an off-price store that started in Filene's and eventually grew to 20 locations. Its parent company went bankrupt in 2009, and by 2011 all Filene's Basement stores were closed.GettySource: New York TimesB. Dalton Books was acquired by Barnes & Noble in 1987, which officially closed the bookstore in January 2010.AP Photo/Ricardo SantosSource: BuzzfeedWaldenbooks was founded in 1933 and grew to 250 locations in 15 years.
In 1994, the company merged with Borders, and in 2011 all Waldenbooks stores closed when Borders Group liquidated.Tim Boyle/Getty ImagesSource: BuzzfeedBorders Books & Music stores also all closed shortly after the company was forced to liquidate in 2011.GettySource: Business InsiderCompUSA started in 1984 as a chain specializing in computer hardware and software. But by 2007, Best Buy and other superstores had taken over, and the last CompUSA closed in 2012.AP Photo/Donna McWilliamSource: CBS NewsBlockbuster, the iconic video rental store, announced in 2013 that it would begin closing most locations. Only a single Blockbuster remains in Bend, Oregon.Yelp/Scott K.Source: Business InsiderA&P was the largest grocery store chain in the US from 1915 to 1975. It filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2010 and again in 2015, closing its stores that year.Chris Hondros / Getty ImagesSource: USA TodaySports Authority had more than 200 locations in the US, but competition drove the company into bankruptcy in 2016, when it closed all its stores and sold its website to competing brand Dick's Sporting Goods.GettySource: Chicago TribuneSport Chalet, which first opened in 1959, abruptly closed all of its stores in 2016.AP Photo/Reed SaxonSource: LA TimesWet Seal, a teen clothing store, filed for bankruptcy in 2015 and closed for good in 2017.Kirsten Acuna/Business InsiderSource: Business InsiderVirgin Megastores stopped operating in the US in 2017, mostly because of the rapidly declining CD market.GettySource: Business InsiderRadio Shack closed more than 1,000 stores after filing for bankruptcy in March 2017.Mary HanburySource: Business InsiderTeavana's 379 locations were closed by its parent company, Starbucks.
in 2018.StarbucksSource: Business InsiderAll 256 of the Bon-Ton stores were liquidated in 2018. The Bon-Ton stores include its namesake ...AP Images / Rusty KennedySource: CNN MoneyToys R Us and its subsidiaries closed in 2018, but in 2021 Macy's announced that it would open Toys R Us sections in 400 locations. Meantime, Babies R Us is slated to open a flagship store in New Jersey's American Dream mall in 2023.Babies R Us before it closed. Business Insider/Jessica TylerSources: USA Today, Business InsiderLifeWay Christian Resources said it would be closing all its stores in March 2018, but it still sells books, bibles, and church supplies online.LifeWaySource: Business InsiderAfter 123 years of business, Henri Bendel closed all its stores in January 2019.Source: Business InsiderDress Barn announced the closing of all 650 of its store locations in May 2019.GettySource: Business InsiderPapyrus, a stationary and greeting card retailer, filed for bankruptcy and confirmed it would close all its stores on January 23, 2020, but Papyrus greeting cards are still available at retailers like Target.Geri Lavrov / Contributor / Getty ImagesSource: Target, Business InsiderNew York discount department store Century 21 — not to be confused with the realty group — closed its 13 stores after going bankrupt in 2020.
The company says it is planning to reopen its flagship location in 2023 with a greater focus on e-commerce.Shoppers leave the Century 21 department store in New York on March 1, 2002. The store, located across the street from the site of the World Trade Center, reopened on February 28 after being closed since the September 11, 2001 attacks and undergoing a $10 million renovation. The reopening was hailed by city officials as a critical piece in the economic recovery of lower Manhattan. REUTERS/Chip EastSource: CNN, Business InsiderMaine-based Olympia Sports shut down its remaining stores in 2022 after a slow decline followed by a tumultuous stint with private equity owners.APSource: RetailDive, Boston GlobencG1vNJzZmivp6x7o8HSoqWeq6Oeu7S1w56pZ5ufony0wM6rnKxlpJ2utXnDqKWtZZWttrTAjJqlsqWfp7Jufo9qb2Zw