Destiny USA retailer to close as store shutdowns speed up
Syracuse, N.Y. — Another long-time retailer is leaving Destiny USA as the pace of stores large and small going dark quickens at the big Syracuse shopping mall.
Clarks shoe store, located on the second floor of the mall’s Macy’s wing, will close permanently on Monday, Jan. 25, 2021, store manager Chuck Szulis said.
The store, which employs seven people, is holding an 80% off sale on all its merchandise.
Szulis referred a Post-Standard | syracuse.com reporter to Clarks’ U.S. headquarters in Waltham, Massachusetts, for further comment. An employee who answered the phone at the headquarters said no one was available to comment.
After Monday, the nearest Clarks store to Syracuse will be in the Waterloo Premium Outlets center.
The Boston Globe reported in September that U.K.-based Clarks could be closing up to a quarter of its 214 retail locations in the U.S. by the end of 2021 in a bid to survive the consumer shift toward online purchases. Gary Champion, president of Clarks’ U.S. operations, has said the company had “overextended our brick-and-mortar portfolio.”
In November, the retailer struck a deal to be taken over by Hong Kong-based private equity firm Lion Rock Capital. The rescue deal was approved by Clarks’ shareholders in December and is expected to be completed early this year.
The Destiny USA mall in Syracuse has seen a string of store closings as shoppers turn to online purchases and away from brick-and-mortar retailers. Rick Moriarty | [email protected]
The closing is more bad news for Destiny USA, the largest mall in New York and sixth largest in the U.S. The center, like many malls across the country, has been hit by a string of recent store closings, with the coronavirus pandemic greatly slowing customer traffic as consumers turn to e-commerce and away from brick-and-mortar retailers.
On Wednesday, Best Buy, one of the mall’s few remaining anchor stores, said it will exit Destiny in April and lay off its 70 employees.
J.C. Penney and Lord & Taylor closed their stores at the mall late last year, and Michaels arts and crafts shut its doors earlier this week. Other stores that have left the mall in recent months include The Express, VF Outlet, Lenox, Justice and Microsoft.
Read more:
Destiny USA loses 15th major retailer in 5 years: See the full list
Destiny USA is losing another anchor store
J.C. Penney sets closing date for Destiny USA store
Lord & Taylor at Destiny USA to close
Michaels at Destiny USA closes
Rick Moriarty covers business news and consumer issues. Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact him anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-470-3148
