GameStop plans to close hundreds of stores in 2020

Around 300 GameStop stores will close their doors for the final time this year, IGN reported earlier today.

The company revealed these plans during an earnings call that provided details on GameStop’s financial situation. The struggling retail company announced during the call that it “plans to meet or exceed” the number of store closures from the previous fiscal year, which saw the closure of 321 stores.

The store closures don’t appear to be linked to the coronavirus outbreak, though. The company detailed that while there’s financial uncertainty caused by the ongoing pandemic, it’s led to a two percent increase in sales. The world’s biggest video game retailer has seen financial losses for years now, leading to many store closures. 

There was some good news that came out of the call for the retail giant, however. GameStop turned a profit in the fourth quarter and decreased the net loss over the full fiscal year from $673 million down to $470.9 million.

GameStop has faced an onslaught of public scrutiny recently, especially for its business practices following the COVID-19 pandemic. The company originally planned to keep all stores open after considering themselves an “essential” business and telling employees to share this information with local authorities if problems persisted.

The company decided to close all California stores following the backlash from employees and the public. GameStop then chose to close all stores across the U.S. on March 22, moving to digital sales and curbside pickup only. 

GameInformer, which is owned by GameStop and saw layoffs in 2019, was also mentioned during the call. The company announced plans to build value in the brand through “interactive digital media,” but didn’t elaborate any further.

This is another blow to the company that operates 5,500 stores in the U.S. with subsidiaries in other countries like Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Europe. The news also comes just a few weeks after the gaming retail company announced former Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aimé joined the board of directors, a move that many people praised on social media to help turn the company back to profitability and restore good faith in GameStop’s name with customers.

Fils-Aimé’s appointment begins on April 20.