Target closing two San Francisco Bay area stores

Target is slated to close two of its San Francisco Bay Area locations this summer despite the company seeing tremendous growth over the course of the pandemic.

A location on Ocean Avenue in San Francisco and on Stevens Creek Boulevard in Cupertino will shut down on June 26. All eligible team members, however, will be given the chance to transfer to different area stores, according to the company.

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"The decision to close a store is always difficult," Target told FOX Business in a statement. Although, the decision comes after "a rigorous annual process to evaluate the performance of every store in the portfolio and maintain the overall health of the business," the company said.

The closures come after a year in which the big-box store thrived, despite the whirlwind retail environment that forced many of its competitors to shutter.

The stock has gained 108% over the past 12 months.

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Target extended its sales streak through the holiday quarter and sales grew by more than $15 billion. That exceeded the company’s annual sales growth over the past 11 years combined.

Its online sales last year surged by almost $10 billion as the habits of millions altered because of the spread of the highly contagious virus. Fourth-quarter profits soared 66% and sales jumped 21%, both topping Wall Street expectations.

To keep pace with increased demand the company actually announced plans not only redo its stores but add new ones.

TARGET TO OPEN MINI APPLE STORES IN SELECT LOCATIONS

So although the company is shuttering two locations, it will accelerate the pace of building small-format stores, with plans to add 30 to 40 new stores this year.

This is an increase from just 29 last year. Target also will step up the pace of its store remodel program. It will remodel 150 stores this year and 200 remodels in the following year.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.