Apple is Permanently Closing Three U.S. Stores

Apple today announced it will be permanently closing three retail stores in the U.S. in June, including Apple Trumbull in Trumbull, Connecticut, Apple Towson Town Center in Towson, Maryland, and Apple North County in Escondido, California.

Apple issued the following statement to MacRumors:

At Apple, we are constantly striving to deliver exceptional service and great experiences for our customers. As we continue investing to expand and enhance our retail stores and offerings worldwide, we remain deliberate about evaluating our existing locations to ensure that we can meet our customers' needs in the best way. Following the departure of several retailers and declining conditions at Trumbull Mall, the Shops at North County, and Towson Town Center, we've made the difficult decision to close our stores at these locations.

Our team members at Trumbull and North County will continue their roles at nearby Apple Retail stores. Towson employees will be eligible to apply for open roles at Apple in accordance with the collective bargaining agreement. We look forward to continuing to serve customers at nearby stores and on Apple.com, the Apple Store app, and at Apple Authorized Resellers and Service Providers throughout the states.

All three of the stores are located in struggling shopping malls that have lost dozens of other major retailers in recent years. Earlier this year, for example, Banana Republic, Madewell, and Tommy Bahama announced they were leaving Towson Town Center. And last month, the owner of Trumbull Mall defaulted on a $150 million dollar loan and the property is now for sale. The Shops at North County was also sold a few years ago amid declining conditions.

Notably, employees at Apple Towson Town Center had formed a union.

On the other hand, Apple has opened 11 new stores around the world in the past year or so, including in Miami and Detroit. Apple has also replaced and upgraded 14 store locations, and it plans to open its first stores in Saudi Arabia.