Much to the surprise of Tri-City consumers, news came out about Shopko abruptly planning to close dozens of stores.

The news began to filter out of the Midwest, about the company being on the hook for about $67 million dollars worth of pharmaceutical products and medicine that they were not able to pay for.

Wednesday January 16th, the chain released a statement from CEO Russ Steinhorst, detailing what's going to happen. The company is closing approximately 96 Shopko and Hometown retail stores, including the one in Yakima.

Lacey, Pullman, and Spokane are the other Washington locations that will close.

HOWEVER, Kennewick has survived the cut. The Yakima Pharmacy prescriptions will be transferred to what the company said was a "Kroger Owned location" but did not specify where they are going.

This was the statement issued by the CEO:

"On January 16, 2019, Shopko, a leading operator of general merchandise stores throughout the Central, Western and Pacific Northwest regions of the U.S., announced that it, along with its subsidiaries, has filed voluntary petitions for a court-supervised financial restructuring under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code.

This announcement is an important step towards protecting our future and ensuring our ability to continue delivering the high-quality products and services that our customers are accustomed to receiving.

Today's announcement provides clarity about the path forward for us, and we are confident the outcome will be a stronger Shopko.

We will be sure to communicate with everyone throughout our reorganization and give regular updates as important decisions and major developments take place."

The company emphasized the following at the stores that are NOT closing:

  • Our continuing stores are open. We continue to offer the high-quality products that you are accustomed to.
  • Our customer programs will be offered as normal at our continuing stores. Except for those stores that we are closing, we are continuing to honor return policies, warranties, gift cards and merchandise credits, as well as our loyalty programs.
  • You can continue to count on our high-quality products and services.
Shopko closing list for WA (shopko)
Shopko closing list for WA (shopko)
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