Major retail chain closes more stores than first estimated as it liquidates under Chapter 11. Rite Aid, founded in 1962, is shutting all stores as part of its ongoing Chapter 11 proceedings. A new court filing on Aug. 15 added 13 more locations to the liquidation list, bringing designated closures to 1,274. Objections to the added closures are due Aug. 25, and a final location closing order was entered on July 10. What does this mean for shoppers in affected communities?
Rite Aid accelerates nationwide liquidation under Chapter 11, expanding store closures
The drugstore chain first sought Chapter 11 protection on Oct. 15, 2023, closing roughly 800 of about 2,100 stores in a reorganization. It filed again on May 5, 2025, this time moving to wind down the entire chain. The Aug. 15 notice tacks on 13 closures across five states:
- Washington (8)
- New Hampshire (2)
- Idaho (1)
- New York (1)
- Oregon (1)
The debtor has not indicated if further locations will be added. For many communities, the next question is practical: where will prescriptions transfer, and how quickly?
Midyear 2025 retail store closings outpace 2024, according to Coresight
The broader retail picture remains tough. In January 2025, Coresight Research projected about 15,000 store closings and 5,800 openings, for a net decline of roughly 9,200 locations, according to CoStar. Retailers shuttered about 7,325 stores in 2024. As of June 27, 2025, closings reached 5,822—well ahead of last year’s midyear tally of 3,496—with 3,960 openings in the same period. After all this, the trend line is clear: closures are accelerating.
Home goods chain At Home joined the wave after a June 16 Chapter 11 filing, saying it will close 28 of its 260 stores. Consequently, liquidation sales and local market shake-ups may continue through year-end.
CVS and Walgreens outline multi-year downsizing plans affecting thousands of locations
Rite Aid’s liquidation lands in a sector already trimming real estate. CVS began a plan in 2021 to close 900 of nearly 9,900 stores—about 300 annually in 2022, 2023, and 2024—and added 271 more closures in 2025. Walgreens evaluated about 2,000 of its ~8,600 stores and identified 1,200 closures over three years, with 500 slated for fiscal 2025. Here’s the bottom line:
| Chain | Closures | Timeframe |
|---|---|---|
| Rite Aid | 1,274 | as of Aug. 15, 2025 |
| Walgreens | 1,200 | 2025–2027 |
| CVS | 1,171 | through 2025 |
Customers should confirm their nearest pharmacy’s status, ask about automatic prescription transfers, and watch for official notices on store timelines. Employees and vendors should monitor court filings and company communications for updates. Thus, planning ahead can ease the transition while communities adapt to fewer nearby options.