Florida Walgreens stores face potential closure as 1,200 locations to shutter

Walgreens Boots Alliance, the parent company of the eponymous drugstore chain, says it will close 1,200 stores within the next three years with about 500 of those shutting down in fiscal 2025.

The Illinois company announced the closures Tuesday in an earnings call. It did not, however, disclose which stores would shutter, but it's highly unlikely that Florida will be spared.

According to Locationscloud.com, a website focused on retail store location data, the chain operates 801 stores in the state, making up 9% of the company’s footprint. That number translates into one pharmacy for every 26,814 people.

Walgreens currently has stores in at least 48 municipalities along the Gulf Coast, according to its website.

Tim Wentworth, Walgreens’ CEO, told analysts on the Tuesday call that “we are focusing on stabilizing the retail pharmacy by optimizing our footprint, controlling operating costs, improving cash flow and continuing to address reimbursement models to support dispensing margins and preserve patient access for the future.”

“Fiscal 2025 will be an important rebasing year as we advance our strategy to drive value creation. This turnaround will take time, but we are confident it will yield significant financial and consumer benefits over the long term.”

The closures announced Tuesday follow Walgreen’s February decision to shut down 50 of its VillageMD clinics across the state. The chain also announced last year that it would close 150 stores after selling at least seven of its locations along the Gulf Coast.

Walgreens Boots Alliance reported Tuesday that its fourth quarter operating loss was $978 million, up 117.1% percent when compared to the same period last year.

For the full fiscal year, the operating loss was $14.1 billion, up 104.5% when compared to the same period last year.