PORTLAND, Ore. (NewsNation) — Walmart is pulling completely out of Oregon’s largest city.
The final two Walmart locations in Portland are set to close at the end of March, at least partly due to crime.
According to a Walmart spokesperson, the stores, which will close March 24, weren’t meeting financial expectations but the decision to close both were based on “several factors.”
The city has been struggling with a relentless wave of shoplifting that the corporate giant says is hammering revenues.
These closures are the latest in a series of businesses relocating from Portland, or shutting down altogether. Many of them cite rising crime and homelessness there.
Last month, Walmart announced the closings of seven stores across five states. Among those was a store in Albuquerque, New Mexico, that was described as “underperforming” in a statement to Nexstar’s KRQE.
Other impacted locations included a store in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and three in the Chicago area.
Nexstar’s WGN reports two of the stores in Chicago did not meet financial expectations.
In December, CEO Doug McMillon warned Walmart could close stores and raise prices due to historically high rates of theft at stores.
“This decision was not made lightly and was reached only after a thorough review process,” a Walmart spokesperson previously told Nexstar. “We have nearly 5,000 stores across the U.S. and unfortunately some do not meet our financial expectations. While our underlying business is strong, these specific stores haven’t performed as well as we hoped.”
Roughly 580 employees will be laid off because of the Portland closures, Willamette Week reported.
Employees are eligible to transfer to work at other Walmart locations.