In order to address the issue of shoplifting and retail theft, the final two Walmart stores in the city of Portland will shutter their doors in late March.
FOX 12 Oregon reported that the Walmart locations at 1123 North Hayden Meadows Drive and 4200 Southeast 82nd Avenue at the Eastport Plaza would close on Mar. 24.
“The decision to close these stores was made after a careful review of their overall performance. We consider many factors, including current and projected financial performance, location, population, customer needs, and the proximity of other nearby stores when making these difficult decisions. After we decide to move forward, our focus is on our associates and their transition, which is the case here,” a spokesperson with Walmart told the local media outlet.
All Portland Walmart stores to permanently close in late March
Story: https://t.co/eeYnnS751h pic.twitter.com/dTS1Y0pcfl
— FOX 12 Oregon (@fox12oregon) March 2, 2023
The announced closures come amid a wave of violent crime across the Portland metro area, which includes retail thefts, armed robberies, and homicides. The city has also seen a surge of violent protests from ANTIFA and BLM groups.
Oregon Live reported that in 2022, Portland set a new record for homicides with 101 cases, surpassing the previous year’s record of 92. Meanwhile, a National Retail Federation report revealed that retailers experienced an average surge of 26.5% in organized retail crime (ORC) incidents in 2021 compared to the previous year.
Walmart has announced it will permanently close all its locations in Portland, Ore. Walmart has long been harshly criticized by the city’s left-wing politicians & residents, but this shutdown follows the consequences of the 2020 BLM-Antifa riots that normalized urban criminality.
— Andy Ngô 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) March 3, 2023
Data from the Portland Police Bureau indicated that between January 2022 and January 2023, the city witnessed more than 6,000 burglary incidents. Additionally, the data revealed over 27,000 larceny offenses.
The epic failure of progressive city leadership pushing a failed ‘woke agenda’ has resulted in lawlessness in some parts of the metro area. Companies are losing money as thefts soar, and a breaking point has been reached. An exodus of businesses will only hurt low-income residents who need the pricing power at discount stores.
Recall a similar exodus with other retailers is happening in other progressive cities across the US, such as San Francisco.
Tyler Durden
Sat, 03/04/2023 – 18:00
