Target Plans To Close 13 US Stores

Target announced that it plans to close 13 stores in the United States on Jan. 30, the Associated Press reported Wednesday. The planned closings are a result of the stores’ individual performance, unrelated to Target’s overall performance, according to a spokeswoman for the retailer.

The popular retailer laid off 2,500 workers earlier this year as part of a $2 billion, two-year cost savings plan and also ceased a major expansion into Canada, which reportedly cost the company $7 billion. Aiming to compete with Walmart and Amazon.com, Target had also announced that it would discharge $1 billion into its e-commerce, Fortune reported.

The company suffered after a massive credit-card breach before Christmas 2013, which made some customers fearful of using their credit cards at the retailer. However, in August this year the store reported a 2.4 percent increase in comparable sales for the second quarter, besting rival mega-chains like Walmart and Macy's.

Other popular retailers that announced store closing this year include Macy’s, which said it would close 40 stores, and J.C. Penney.