Report: Parent Companies of 2 Magic Valley Mall Chains Planning Store Closures

2017 has already been a challenging year for many stores in our area. If a new report is correct, 2 stores in the Magic Valley Mall could be affected by upcoming closures.

To be clear, there has been no specific announcement about the Twin Falls locations of these stores. But, there are multiple reports that the parent companies of Gamestop and Payless ShoeSource will be closing many stores this year.

The Verge was one outlet that shared the news of the hard times that has hit Gamestop. According to their sources, Gamestop will be closing around 150 stores this year. Other than the new Nintendo Switch console, video games aren't selling very well right now.

A much larger set of store closures appears to potentially be affecting Payless ShoeSource. Bloomberg is speculating that their parent company may be filing for bankruptcy soon. That is reported to lead to at least 500 store closures and that number may reach as high as 1,000.

Again, neither of these chains has announced anything regarding specific locations including our local stores in Twin Falls. But, smaller markets like ours are always in danger when a major chain starts talking about downsizing or closing. We will update this story if any more details are announced.