Macy’s to close five stores, none in California

Department store giant Macy’s Inc. said Tuesday that it would shut five underperforming stores this year. No California locations are scheduled to close.

The affected stores are in Boise, Idaho; Waterford, Mich.; St. Ann, Mo.; Missoula, Mont.; and Burlington, N.J. Final clearance sales will begin Sunday and run for about two months, the company said.

The closures will leave Macy’s with 809 namesake locations and 40 Bloomingdale’s stores.

“The decision to close stores is difficult and often occurs when the market changes, new competing shopping centers are opened nearby to existing older ones or when customers change shopping habits,� Chief Executive Terry J. Lundgren said.

More than 300 employees will be affected by the closures. Those associates will be offered positions in nearby stores where possible, the Cincinnati chain said.

Macy’s has been trying to reverse a decades-long decline in the department store business model that has seen consumers migrate to big-box discounters, free-standing stores and the Internet.

But the recession, the reshaping of the company and tough competition have kept Macy’s financial results volatile.

The company lost $35 million for the three months ended Oct. 31, even after slashing 7,000 jobs and closing 11 underperforming stores, including a downtown Los Angeles location, last year. Over the last eight quarters, its earnings have seesawed, swinging as high as $750 million in profit to as low as $4.77 billion in losses, a result of a write-down in assets.

Its shares fell 20 cents, or 1.2%, to $16.86 on Tuesday. Macy’s is expected to release December sales results Thursday.

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