With financial results not meeting the expectations of executives, Family Dollar says it will trim its work force and close 370 of its stores nationwide, or 5 percent of its stores.
It’s unclear if any of the local stores are threatened. Family Dollar has a location at 34200 State Road 54 in Zephyrhills, and at 32644 State Road 52 in San Antonio.
Howard R. Levin, the chairman and chief executive of Family Dollar, blamed sever winter weather conditions that kept many shoppers away in the north over the past few month. It also disrupted merchandise deliveries, and higher-than-expected costs to maintain those stores. All of that contributed to net sales dropping by $200 million — or 7 percent — from the previous year.
There are more than 50 Family Dollar stores in the Tampa Bay region, and is one of several chains with stores locally that caters to the low-cost merchandise market.
The store closings along with the job cuts and lower prices on nearly 1,000 items would save the chain between $40 million and $45 million in the coming year, executives said. Family Dollar also will slow its national growth this year, giving time for some new stores to become profitable.
Family Dollar averages a little more than six employees per store, with closings alone expected to affect 2,300 jobs.
