Macy’s Simi Valley store, 4 others to close. Layoffs planned

Macy’s is closing five stores, including the location at Simi Valley Town Center, and laying off 3.5% of the department store chain’s workforce, according to a statement from a company spokesperson and media reports.

About 2,350 jobs will be cut and the department store chain intends to rely more heavily on automation of its supply chain and to outsource some roles, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal citing a memo sent to employees Thursday.

The announcement, which came ahead of the planned February retirement of company Chief Executive Jeff Gennette, marks the latest example of brick-and-mortar retail locations struggling to maintain a foothold as consumers increasingly turn to online shopping.

“As we prepare to deploy a new strategy to meet the needs of an ever-changing consumer and marketplace, we made the difficult decision to reduce our workforce by 3.5%,” a company spokesperson said in an email. The decision, the person said, would allow the chain “to become a more streamlined company.”

Last year, during an earlier round of closures, the Macy’s at Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza was shuttered.

Gennette and incoming CEO Tony Spring, currently Macy’s president, sent employees a memo Thursday, the Wall Street Journal said, listing locations slated for store closures as Simi Valley; Bayfair Center, San Leandro, Calif.; Kukui Grove Center, Lihue, Hawaii; Ballston Quarter, Arlington, Va.; and Governor’s Square, Tallahassee, Fla. Layoffs will happen Jan. 26, the memo said.