Reasons to Read

Uncover why headline store closures overstate the weakness in US apparel, footwear and department store retail, and where physical-retail growth is concentrating in 2026.

This report is part of a three-report Real Estate Insights series; other reports will cover food, drug and mass retailers, and the beauty retail sector.

Read this report to discover answers to these and other questions:

• Why is physical-retail growth concentrating around clear, scalable propositions?
• Which retailers with clear customer propositions are driving store growth?
• How is location strategy becoming a key differentiator?
• How are retailers reallocating capital toward higher-productivity ecosystems?

Companies mentioned in this report include: Adidas, American Eagle Outfitters (AEO), Aritzia, Associated British Foods (Primark), Boot Barn, Burlington Stores, Buckle, Caleres, Carter’s, Dick’s Sporting Goods, DTLR, Fast Retailing (Uniqlo), Finish Line, Foot Locker, Gap Inc., H&M, Hollister, J.Crew Factory, JCPenney, JD Sports Fashion, Kohl’s, Lululemon Athletica, Macy’s, Mango, maurices, Mavi Jeans, New Balance, Nike, Nordstrom, Rainbow Shops, Ross Stores, Skechers, The Children’s Place, The TJX Companies (T.J. Maxx, Marshalls), Torrid, Urban Outfitters, Vans, Victoria’s Secret, Zara.

Data in this research report include: US apparel and footwear market size and growth; off-price retailer expansion plans; store counts, growth leaders and laggards, and headline store-count drivers; major store openings, closures and net openings (apparel, footwear, off-price and department stores); 2025 opening and closure lists and average store sizes; bankruptcy-linked closures; same-store traffic trends; net store change by location type; investment shifts toward higher-productivity formats; international retailers’ US network expansion; and reallocation of vacated anchor space.

Other relevant research:  

• Market Navigator: US Apparel and Footwear—Solid Spending Growth, Shifting Share and Uneven Execution
• BEST at Retail: Evolving Physical Stores for the Attention Economy