Plus-size clothing chain Torrid is planning to close 180 underperforming stores this year – almost 30% of retailer’s brick and mortar footprints announced in its first quarter revenue report.
The store closure is part of Torrid’s move towards a more digital forward approach, the June 5 report said. Torrid CEO Lisa Harper said in a news release that 70% of Torrid customers shop on the store’s website, and retailers saw a drop in sales in the first quarter by nearly 5% compared to 2024.
Since January, Torrid has already closed two locations, counting the chain’s total store 632.
There is what we know about the closure and what it means for shoppers.
What kind of passionate places are closed?
As of June 10th, Torrid has not shared which locations will be closed. When contacted by USA Today, Torrid did not respond immediately due to comments about the closure.
To find a list of enthusiastic locations, visit the Torrid website at Torrid.com/stores/.
Torrid joins other plus size clothing stores
Torrid is not the only plus-size clothing chain to close the location. In 2020, Ohio-based plus-size retailer Lane Bryant closed 157 physical locations and in 2019 all physics stores — both of which are part of bankruptcy protection. Both Lane Bryant and Avenue continue to operate their online stores.
“We can’t grab last minute outfits because we’re short.”
Christine Murphy, an online advocate in the plus-size clothing industry since 2016, told USA Today that she was “devastated” to learn to close the store. She said the “good chunks” in the closet are from Torrid and have not chosen, but because it is one of the only remaining brick-and-mortar stores that offer her size.
“Removing the brick and mortar options from plus-sized people, especially our people at the larger edge of the fat spectrum, means we have to plan our lives ahead of time as we are relegated to online-only options,” Murphy said. “We are short on and we can’t grab last minute clothes for parties, interviews, or even funerals. If our luggage gets lost while traveling, we get unlucky. Straight people have endless options.
Pennsylvania-based Murphy said the brand doesn’t know how to start a good plus-size line.
Murphy cited Old Navy’s 2021 board crate campaign as an example. A year after starting the size inclusive line, Old Navy decided to reduce it. They claim that the decline in sales was due to the line not as successful as expected.
“The clothes aren’t trendy. They use real plus size bodies in their campaigns to not show how the piece looks like us. And when items aren’t sold because it didn’t work, the plus size community is criticized for not buying it,” Murphy said.
In a video of Tiktok, with over 100,000 viewers as of June 10, content creator Nikki Apostolou said he was not surprised Torrid was closing its store.
“I remember being young and going to the mall and not having one store where I could shop while my friends left their bags and bags. So it’s important to have a brick and mortar store, especially if plus size women make up the majority of the market,” Apostolou said in the video.
JCPenney, Macy’s and other retailers closed their stores in 2025
Several other large retailers have announced their 2025 closures, including JCPenney, Macy’s, Kohl’s, Big Lots, Party City, and Joann Fabric and Crafts.
Gretacross is a national trend reporter for USA Today. Story ideas? Please email her gcross@usatoday.com.