America's department stores are in deep, deep trouble

The retail apocalypse has only just begun

A closed Macy's store.
(Image credit: Kristoffer Tripplaar / Alamy Stock Photo)

Last year was heralded by many analysts as the "retail apocalypse." The term is a bit of a misnomer, since the overall industry is doing okay. But things were really bad for department store chains, which have lost 500,000 jobs since 2001. In 2017 alone, a whole swath of chains including Payless and Toys "R" Us filed for bankruptcy, while major department retailers like Sears, J.C. Penney, and Macy's shuttered around 9,000 stores.

It looks like 2018 could be even worse.

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Jeff Spross

Jeff Spross was the economics and business correspondent at TheWeek.com. He was previously a reporter at ThinkProgress.