(Bloomberg) -- Walmart Inc. is closing four stores in Chicago, halving its footprint in the third-largest US city after years of mounting losses.
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The closings mark a retreat for the nation’s largest retailer, which faces tough competition in Chicago from the likes of Target Corp., Albertsons Cos. and Aldi. Walmart said it had tried and failed to improve its performance by building smaller stores, localizing its merchandise offerings and investing $70 million in recent years on store upgrades, health facilities and a training center.
Crime and theft, which have cast an unwanted spotlight on Chicago, weren’t leading drivers of the decision, the company said in an email Tuesday. While Walmart has developed its smaller “Neighborhood Market” format in part for cities, the Bentonville, Arkansas-based retailer has sometimes stumbled in replicating the rural and suburban success of its sprawling Supercenters. For example, it’s never been able to crack the New York City market.
“The simplest explanation is that collectively our Chicago stores have not been profitable since we opened the first one nearly 17 years ago,” Walmart said in a statement. “These...
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