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In 2024, thousands of stores closed. Huge retailers like Foot Locker, CVS, Walgreens, TGI Fridays, Sears, Family Dollar, Pizza Hut, Walmart, Red Lobster, Boston Market, Best Buy, Applebee's, Pizza Hut and plenty of others shuttered locations, and we already know that 2025 is going to be very similar since one massive company just revealed plans to close hundreds of their 4,000 stores.
GameStop's sales have dropped from $1.08 billion in 2023 to $860 million in 2024, a loss that has hit the retailer hard. Even though they recently closed 300 stores, they plan to shutter more in the coming months - a lot more. In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, GameStop stated, "While a specific set of stores has not been identified for closure, we anticipate... the closure of a larger number of stores than we have closed in the past few years." Considering that the past few years saw a few hundred closures, the expectation is that a vast amount of GameStops will be closing next year.
It's no surprise to one analyst, who told RetailDive.com, "GameStop has virtually no chance of returning to profitability in its core business." The company opened in 1984 and recently has struggled to sell video games in its brick and mortar stores since many consumers have turned to digital downloads and online shopping.
To help turn things around, in October, GameStop collaborated with Collectors Holdings to become an authorized Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA) dealer so they can offer trading card grading and autograph authentication services at some of their stores. They are considering introducing other new services and products soon to grow their market size. It's too late for some of their international footprint though. They are ending operations in Germany by the end of the fiscal year, winding down business in Italy and have already left Ireland, Austria and Switzerland.