by Madeleine Hubbard
Dollar Tree and its subsidiary, Family Dollar, will close 1,000 stores following a net loss of $1.71 billion over three months, the discount retailer said Wednesday.
The company plans to close about 600 Family Dollar stores in the first half of this year and allow about 370 Family Dollar stores and 30 Dollar Tree stores to close over the next few years at the end of their lease terms.
The company opened 641 new stores, including 333 Dollar Trees and 308 Family Dollars, last fiscal year, which ended on Feb. 3, 2024.
However, during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023, the company saw $1.71 billion in losses.
The company also said that it suffered a decline in gross profit margins, which was “driven by elevated shrink, product cost inflation, unfavorable sales mix, and higher distribution and markdown costs,” and partially offset by factors such as lower freight costs.
“As an organization, we continue to execute at a high level. Our core operating performance was strong in the fourth quarter, despite some unanticipated developments related to general liability claims,” company CEO Jeff Davis said.
The company’s announcement came after Family Dollar Stores pleaded guilty to holding consumer goods in insanitary conditions and agreed to pay a $41.6 million fine. However, the plea came after the end of last fiscal year so it did not impact the data.
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Madeleine Hubbard joined Just the News as a fast file reporter after working as an editor at Breitbart News.
Photo “Family Dollar Store” by Mike Mozart. CC BY 2.0.
