GameStop Store Closures: 200 Global Locations to Close

Following a round of layoffs in August, GameStop (GME) has set a plan in motion to close between 180 to 200 stores that are underperforming globally by the end of the fiscal year. The news of the store closures came as the company released its second-quarter earnings report.

According to Jim Bell, GameStop CFO, the company closed 195 stores over the last year. Bell did not give an indication to which stores were closing this year or how many were located in the U.S., USA Today reported.

GameStop has undergone what it calls a reboot strategy, which incorporates, “optimizing the core business by driving efficiency and effectiveness, creating the social and cultural hub of gaming within each GameStop, building compelling digital capabilities, and transforming our vendor and partner relationships for an evolving video game industry,” George Sherman, GameStop’s CEO said in a statement.

“This is a compelling new strategic vision for the company, and we’ve already started to execute against all four pillars. We also remain committed to returning capital to shareholders and balancing that opportunity against the need to maintain a strong balance sheet to properly run our business and invest in responsible growth,” Sherman added.

The news of the company reboot comes as GameStop experienced a sales decline across several of its product categories for Q2. The company reported a decrease in global sales of 14.3 percent to $1.3 billion. Comparable store sales were down 11.6 percent as well.

Categories hit by the decrease included new hardware sales, new software sales, accessories sales, pre-owned sales, and digital receipts. Collectible sales increased by 21.2 percent for the company.

GameStop said it is undergoing a cost-savings that is expected to return an annual operating profit increase in excess of $200 million, up from its initial estimate of $100 million.

Shares of GameStop stock were down 7.5639 percent as of 2:12 p.m. ET on Wednesday.