By 1812Blockhouse
And then there was one.
The era of local department stores is winding to a close, as evidenced on Wednesday with the announcement that the Macy’s store at Richland Mall will be closing this spring. A clearance sale will begin soon and last for two to three months.
This will leave JCPenney as the sole remaining department store anchor still in operation at the county’s only traditional shopping mall, which celebrates its 52nd year in 2021.
The JCPenney store was added to the mall in 1997.
The local closure is among 37 taking place nationwide, all part of an attempted three year profitability plan.
Last year, 29 stores were shuttered, leaving the chain with 540 locations. The stated goal is the closure of 125 local stores.
Other Ohio Macy’s closures include those at Great Lakes Mall in Mentor, the Tri-County Mall in Cincinnati, and the Lima Mall in Lima.
Macy’s at Richland Mall occupies the structure which first housed O’Neils, and Akron-based department store. Later it became the home of Kaufmann’s, a Pittsburgh chain. Macy’s had assumed the space vacated by the closure of Lazarus; this is now the home of Avita Hospital Ontario.
Photo: Creative Commons License
