Walmart closing two Portland stores (Gresham, Clackamas: apartments, crime, home)

[Take a History Class]

https://www.kptv.com/2023/02/23/2-po...s-close-march/

“We have nearly 5,000 stores across the U.S. and unfortunately some do not meet our financial expectations,” the announcement said. “While our underlying business is strong, these specific stores haven’t performed as well as we hoped.”
All employees at the two locations will have the option to transfer to other, nearby locations.
“We are grateful to the customers who have given us the privilege of serving them at our Hayden Meadows and Eastport Plaza locations.”

[EasyBeezy]

The Eastport Plaza Walmart has been pretty sketchy for at least 10 years. I have wondered why anyone would go to that one when a far less sketchy Walmart lies 3 miles down 82nd in Clackamas. Terrible news for Lents and adjacent areas of SE though. Not only are they losing a big, inexpensive place to shop in their neighborhood, but I can't imagine that giant hulk of a building will be used for anything new for many years, if ever.

[oregonwoodsmoke]

Suspecting too much shoplifting has destroyed profitability.

[NeutralZone]

Another indication of the decline and fall of Portland. I have no doubt huge losses due to theft played a crucial role in this. I was at my local Safeway last week and they have gathered all the laundry detergent, toilet paper, personal care, baby food, diapers, and liquor into a cordoned off area where you must pay before exiting. I overheard a customer complain, and a store employee told her they had to do that as they lost over $1,000,000 in the last six months.

[Jimrob1]

Originally Posted by NeutralZone

Another indication of the decline and fall of Portland. I have no doubt huge losses due to theft played a crucial role in this. I was at my local Safeway last week and they have gathered all the laundry detergent, toilet paper, personal care, baby food, diapers, and liquor into a cordoned off area where you must pay before exiting. I overheard a customer complain, and a store employee told her they had to do that as they lost over $1,000,000 in the last six months.

I'm in Florida and crime is no picnic here either, but nothing like your experiencing. I always thought Portland had a very high percentage of lowlife's just wandering about. Evidently the local retail thinks so also, for businesses to have to go the route you described. Cordoned off areas where you have to pay before exiting. Sounds like the stores have good cause to go that route.

[EasyBeezy]

That Walmart (Eastport) has had anything of value under lock and key for at least 5 years. While it is possible that shoplifting did them in, I imagine that changing neighborhood demographics and consumer tastes in that area also made it difficult.

[StealthRabbit]

These are the only (2) urban centric Walmarts in Portland, afaik, and each have become slum stores and I'm sure very troublesome for security, sales, employment and facilities maintenance. Tragic loss for Portland metro to lose business after business, but they've shot themselves in the foot. Both feet.

[Jimrob1]

So now all these Walmart shoppers will head to Wood Village and Gresham Walmarts. I think the Gresham store is the small Neighborhood Market version of Walmart. These stores now will be overwhelmed with shoppers. I imagine these stores will quickly become problems for Walmart also. Metro Portland is way to populated with people with limited incomes, to afford losing 2 Suoer Walmarts. I suggest city leaders take a serious look at the amount of businesses leaving the region.

[Hemlock140]

Their statement "not meeting financial expectations" could mean different things, such as not enough patronage there, people are only buying the low profit items, or they are losing profit due to shoplifting. All of those affect financial performance. In a city near us, Bellevue WA there were two, neither a Superstore. The neighborhood market is still there but is getting run down and both their produce and meat are pretty bad. The other larger one has shut down, "due to poor financial performance" and will be replaced by mixed-use development complete with housing, offices and additional retail. This is in a city where the median income is $140,252, median home $1.28 million, though this is at Factoria which is a lower income area with many apartments.

[karlsch]

It wasn't long ago when Portland leaders, including Sam Adams, were trying to keep the "evil" Walmart out of the city. https://www.oregonlive.com/business/...econd_por.html