National grocery chain Kroger is closing dozens of stores.
The initial closure announcement came in a June 2025 earnings report, which said Kroger would close approximately 60 “underperforming” stores over the next 18 months to make resources from struggling locations available to stronger markets.
“Kroger expects to experience modest economic benefits as a result of these closures,” the company said.
Employees working at these closing locations will be offered jobs at other Kroger stores, business news site Cheapism reported.
The company said the closures came as Kroger said its sales fell slightly to $45.1 billion from $45.3 billion in the same period last year.
Kroger also stated in the financial report that as part of its growth strategy, the company will accelerate the opening of more stores in 2026, and the scale of new store construction will be expanded by approximately 30% compared with 2025.
The list of closed stores has not yet been announced. However, various media outlets and unions have identified at least 30 locations as closed.
They include the following locations:
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California(1)
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Colorado(2)
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Georgia(4)
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Illinois(4)
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Indiana(3)
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Kentucky(1)
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Maryland(1)
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North Carolina(1)
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Tennessee(1)
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Texas(1)
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Virginia(5)
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West Virginia(1)
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Wisconsin(5)
The closures were announced about six months after a proposed $24.6 billion merger between Kroger and Albertsons collapsed, The Independent reported.
In December 2025, a judge issued a temporary injunction and a permanent injunction, terminating the agreement.
Judge Marshall Ferguson in Seattle, Washington, issued the permanent injunction, claiming the merger would reduce grocery competition in the state and violate consumer protection laws, the outlet wrote.
Kroger did not immediately respond to MassLive’s request for comment on Wednesday, February 25.
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