Walgreens' new private owners are closing fewer stores

The revised pace reflects a broader slowdown in the company's restructuring since it went private in 2025. Walgreens had originally announced in October 2024 that it would close roughly 1,200 underperforming stores over three years, with around 500 of those slated for 2025. Under its new ownership, that timeline has been stretched considerably.

Company leadership has characterized the cuts as a "store optimization strategy" focused on directing investment toward locations with stronger performance, according to Inc. Its total store count still exceeds 8,500 locations across the country.

Closures confirmed so far in 2026 span more than a dozen states, including locations in California, Illinois, New York, Texas, Virginia, and Washington, DC. Among the sites that have shut down are stores in San Francisco, Chicago, Brooklyn, Seattle, and Arlington, Virginia.

The company's cost-cutting has extended beyond retail locations. A distribution center in Houston spanning roughly 500,000 square feet was shut down permanently on June 1, 2026. Job cuts numbering in the hundreds have accompanied the store closures.

The company traces its origins to a single pharmacy in Chicago opened in 1901, eventually expanding into one of the world's most recognizable drugstore chains. The company later merged with Alliance Boots to form Walgreens Boots Alliance before going private in 2025.