Typically, when you hear that a big box retailer is closing you can understand why. 

Take Toys R Us for example. While the very thought of Geoffrey the Giraffe stirs up all sorts of nostalgia in ‘90s kids, it was difficult for the brick-and-mortar store to compete with online giants like Amazon. Even as big as Toys R Us was, Amazon had an even bigger selection and could have those toys delivered directly to your door. 

Toys R Us Reportedly Sold For $5.7 Billion
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Once booming home goods retailer, Bed, Bath and Beyond was heavily criticized for their cluttered stores and failure to embrace e-commerce at the right time. Their reluctance to embrace the internet allowed competitors like Wayfair to slide in and steal customers, especially a the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. While they managed to avoid bankruptcy, they're liquidating dozens of stores including locations in Boise, Twin Falls and Moscow.

Image via Google Maps
Image via Google Maps
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But to hear that Walmart is closing stores?! That’s nearly unheard of. They’re a force to be reckoned with because of their low prices and wide selection of well…everything. It’s hard to picture an “underperforming” Walmart store, but apparently, they exist and eight of them will close in 2023. 

Business Insider reports that the closures will affect locations in five different states, including Idaho’s neighbor, Oregon. Both of those locations are in Portland. 

Image via Google Maps
Image via Google Maps
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It’s not the first time the Arkansas-based big box retailer closed stores in the Pacific Northwest. Business Insider says they closed a location in Vancouver, Washington in 2019 and one in Bellevue, Washington last year.  

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What About Walmart Stores in Idaho?

Walmart operates 26 locations. At this time, it doesn’t look like any of those locations are marked for closure. We doubt that burger sales are an indication of how well or not well a Walmart store is doing, but McDonald’s closed their locations at four Idaho Walmarts in 2021. The location on Overland Road in Boise was one of those stores.

KEEP READING: Businesses That Have Closed In and Around Boise in 2023

The following businesses have closed or plan to close in the Treasure Valley in 2023.

LOOK: These Are the 50 Biggest Retailers in America; 2 Are Based in Idaho

Stacker recently put together a list of the top 50 biggest retailers in America using retail sales data from Kantar, provided by the National Retail Federation. They were ranked by the dollar amount of retail sales they did in 2021. We took it a step further to see how many locations they have in Idaho and across the United States.

Total stores were based on figures from Scrapehero. The number of Idaho stores is based on information collected from a brand's website. It was easier to find that info for some and difficult for others. So cut us some slack if we're off by a store or two. It was hard to count all those little dots on the map. (We're looking at you Ace Hardware.)

Businesses the Boise Area Has Lost in 2022

It's always tough saying goodbye to a business that has truly felt like an old friend. These are the businesses the Boise area has said goodbye to in 2022.

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