Rite Aid to close 117 Ohio stores amid bankruptcy recovery

COLUMBUS, Ohio ( WCMH ) — Drugstore chain Rite Aid is closing all Ohio locations but four by the end of September as the company recovers from filing for bankruptcy.

The chain announced earlier this month the closures are impacting 117 of the company’s 121 remaining stores across Ohio, along with more than 200 in Michigan that will shutter by the end of next month. Come Oct. 1, only the following four Rite Aid locations will remain operational in Ohio:

• 419 Claremont Ave. in Ashland
• 1045 Wheeling Ave. in Cambridge
• 735 N. Water St. in Uhrichsville
• 1955 Cleveland Rd. in Wooster

Rite Aid said in a statement to NBC4’s Ohio sister stations that the decision to close nearly all locations “is not one we take lightly” and that the company considered “various factors in our decision-making, including our overall business strategy.”

“We were required to go through a retail sale process as part of our Chapter 11 process, which allows prospective buyers to bid on parts of our business. As a result, we made the difficult but necessary business decision to exit these markets,” a spokesperson said. “While we have had to make difficult business decisions over the past several months to improve our business and optimize our retail footprint, we are committed to becoming financially and operationally healthy.”

Ride Aid said prescription and pharmacy inventory from the impact stores will be transferred to Walgreens to ensure no disruption of service, the company said.

The closures are coming after Rite Aid filed for bankruptcy in October 2023, and announced the shutting of 154 stores across the nation, six of which were in Ohio. Since then, the number of shut down locations has continued to snowball with hundreds of more stores added to the chopping block.

The drugstore is joining a number of other companies that have filed for bankruptcy and are now shuttering Ohio locations. Buca di Beppo filed for Chapter 11 in early August as the company said it owes at least $15 million to $50 million to at least 30 creditors, court documents show. Plans were finalized earlier this year to bulldoze the chain’s Worthington restaurant at 60 E. Wilson Bridge after the site was purchased by Chick-fil-A in April .

Red Lobster is closing a chunk of Ohio locations after filing for bankruptcy in May , citing $1 billion in debt. Bed, Bath & Beyond filed for bankruptcy last year, shuttering a number of central Ohio stores .

Big Lots is shuttering several Ohio stores , among more than 300 locations that are closing amid speculation the company will file for bankruptcy . While Big Lots initially shared plans in June to shutter 35 to 40 stores by the end of 2024, the number of closures ballooned in July as 149 locations posted banners on their websites that read “closing this location.” Since then, the chain has submitted an updated filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that states the company expects to close up to 315 stores.

LL Flooring, a specialty flooring company formerly known as Lumber Liquidators, is closing several central Ohio stores after filing for bankruptcy . The Virginia-based company filed for Chapter 11 in early August and announced it will shutter 94 of its more than 300 locations nationwide. Charles Tyson, president of LL Flooring, said the company is reorganizing for a sale and is in “active negotiations with multiple bidders.”

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