102-year-old mall retailer quietly closes 25 stores

A mall chain many consumers around the United States grew up visiting has closed another 25 stores over the last three months.

Earlier this year, we saw a number of mall retailers close locations, despite July 2026 Placer.ai data revealing that foot traffic across all three mall formats grew year over year. As part of my retail coverage for TheStreet, I reported on Vera Bradley cutting its traditional mall footprint by more than 43%, and Fossil Group quietly closing 219 stores over five years. 

Most retailers choosing not to renew their mall leases are shifting their strategies. Some are pivoting to open-air shopping centers, which have been outperforming traditional malls for a while, while others are responding to changing consumer preferences by investing more in their online presence.

Founded in 1924, Genesco is a footwear-first company and the engine behind popular brands focused on kids, teens, and young adults. These include Little Burgundy, Journeys, and Schuh.  

Journeys’ parent company closes another 25 stores in the second quarter 

Genesco has closed another 25 stores across its portfolio, including 17 Journeys Group locations, in the second quarter of fiscal 2027, according to the company’s latest earnings release. 

While the company closed 25 stores, it also opened three, for a net decrease of 22 stores for the period. However, it saw a 5% year-over-year decrease in store count. 

“The company ended the quarter with 1,186 stores compared with 1,253 stores at the end of the second quarter last year, or a decrease of 5%. Square footage was down 5% on a year-over-year basis,” Genesco said. 

For the reporting period, the company reported a net sales decline, attributing it to store optimization, among other factors. 

Genesco Q2 fiscal 2027 earnings summary

• Net sales of $530 million decreased 3% year over year. 

• Comparable sales decreased 1% compared to last year, with stores up 1% while e-commerce decreased 6%.

• Gross margin improved 560 basis points compared to last year, reflecting tariff refunds; adjusted gross margin improved by 140 basis points compared to last year.

• Operating margin improved by 330 basis points compared to last year; adjusted operating margin improved by 100 basis points compared to last year. 

“As anticipated, the decline in sales was driven by 3 shorter-term headwinds tied to strategic actions we’re taking to improve our business, namely continued store closures, as we optimize our fleet, the license transition ahead of the Wrangler launch, and our intentional pullback on discounting and promotional activity at Schuh,” CEO Mimi Vaughn said during the earnings call.

Genesco’s closures were not sudden, but rather, part of a strategy to address changing consumer habits and shifting mall dynamics. 

Genesco previously closed more than 200 locations 

Earlier this year, I reported on Genesco’s first-quarter downsizing, finding that there was more to the story of 30 closures in one quarter. 

An analysis of the company’s official document revealed that over the last three years, the retailer has been quietly closing an average of 62 stores per year. 

More precisely, SEC filings show Genesco closed 202 stores between January 2023 and May 2026. 

During the first quarter of fiscal 2027 alone, the company opened two stores and closed 30, ending the quarter with 1,208. The data reveal that over the first six months of 2026, Genesco permanently shut down 55 stores. 

The company’s downsizing efforts started about three years ago, when the retailer announced plans to close more than 100 Journeys stores, up from a previous estimate of 60 locations.

Genesco estimated that these efforts would help it save up to $40 million, according to its fiscal 2024 first-quarter report. 

Genesco’s store closures as part of a strategy to move away from malls 

“Amid declining sales, Genesco is shifting the store presence of Journeys away from malls,” RetailDive reported in May 2023. 

If mall foot traffic is increasing, why would a retailer want to move out of these shopping centers? 

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Despite the overall increase in mall traffic, consumers’ habits have largely changed, as shoppers nowadays tend to make more frequent but shorter, more mission-driven visits. There’s also a huge visitor gap between mall tiers, with smaller malls losing anchor retailers and the biggest going strong, according to Cushman & Wakefield.

As legacy anchors such as Macy’s, JCPenney, and Forever 21 downsize, specialty retailers lose critical foot traffic. Earlier this year, Banana Republic, Tommy Bahama, and Madewell quietly exited Maryland’s Towson Town Center Mall. 

Speaking of the company’s strategy to move Journeys stores away from malls, Vaughn told Retail Dive that the company is “encouraged by the early reads and believes this initiative will represent a key element in Journeys’ growth moving forward.” 

Genesco has another ace up its sleeve: 4.0 Journeys store 

As a legacy brand that survived more than a century of challenges, Genesco should be well-versed in addressing shifts in consumer behavior.  Besides eliminating underperforming stores, the retailer has another strategy to boost its revenue. 

Genesco is aggressively expanding its new store concepts, so-called 4.0 Journeys stores. In the first quarter, it remodeled 21 locations to 4.0 stores, while in the second quarter, it remodeled another 25, including one Journeys Kidz 4.0 location.  

This brings the total Journeys 4.0 remodeled store fleet to 130 locations across the chain, according to its Form 8-K filing. 

“Our 4.0 rollout remains a major driver with the new format continuing to deliver in excess of a 25% sales list,” Vaughn said. 

Traditional Journeys stores built during the 1990s and 2000s looked like mini-warehouses designed to hold as much shoe inventory as possible. Genesco’s modern store format trades those floor-to-ceiling racks for bigger spaces, updated display fixtures, interactive features, and higher overall sales productivity, according to the company’s Q4 2026 earnings call.

Journeys Global Retail Group CEO Andy Gray spoke to Footwear News in October 2025, stressing that the remodeling of stores was “worth it.” 

“We have managed to retain our existing consumer while also attracting new customers. The new store concept has way out indexed on both metrics versus the balance of our chain. I mean, the metrics are great. We love it,” Gray said. 

Related: 161-year-old kids clothing giant closes 29 more stores

This story was originally published by TheStreet on Sep 7, 2026, where it first appeared in the Retail section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here.