Macy’s to Cut 5,000 Jobs, Close Additional Stores; Westside Pavilion, Laguna Hills Locations Set to Shutter in Early 2018

Retail giant Macy's will cut 5,000 jobs and close seven more stores in Florida, California, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Vermont.

The exterior of Macy's at Westside Pavilion is seen in this Google Maps Street Image.

The moves are part of a plan announced in August 2016 to close 100 stores. However, Macy's announced in a news release Thursday that it will shutter seven new locations it had previously not identified for closure.

The new closures are:

• Miami (Downtown), Miami, Fla.
• The Oaks, Gainesville, Fla.
• Novato (Furniture), Novato, Calif.
• Honey Creek Mall, Terre Haute, Ind.
• Birchwood Mall, Fort Gratiot Township, Mich.
• Fountain Place, Cincinnati, Ohio
• Burlington Town Center, Burlington, Vt.

The retailer also said Thursday that it is moving ahead with four other store closures previously announced:

• Laguna Hills Mall, Laguna Hills, Calif.
• Westside Pavilion, Los Angeles, Calif.
• Stonestown Galleria, San Francisco, Calif.
• Magic Valley Mall, Twin Falls, Idaho

Altogether, Macy's has now revealed 81 of the 100 locations.

Macy's is one of many traditional retail chains struggling for stability amid stiff competition from alternative retail chains and online retailers.

"Our primary focus in 2017 has been to continue the strong growth of digital and mobile, stabilize our brick & mortar business and set the foundation for future growth," said Jeff Gennette, Macy’s, Inc. chief executive officer. "We’ve made good progress on each, including encouraging trend improvements in our brick & mortar business."

The company expects to see a $300 million boost from strong holiday shopping numbers, cost saving measures and other changes.

Macy's will likely start liquidation sales on January 8, which will run for roughly eight to 12 weeks.

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