Shopko to Close

Shopko announced Monday, March 18, that they will be closing all remaining stores. The move comes after Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings failed to restructure the company’s debt and save the retailer’s remaining locations across the north-central midwestern United States.

Staff at the Glasgow store confirmed that they had been informed of the closure Monday morning. There are currently 30 full and part-time employees at the Shopko in Glasgow, and it is unclear if there are enough vacant jobs in the community to support such a loss. According to the Glasgow Area Chamber of Commerce and Agriculture, laid off employees will need to work with the Montana Job Service Office in Wolf Point if they require help finding new work.

“That’s really, really sad,” commented Glasgow Mayor Becky Erickson. “My first thought was for the loyal employees of Shopko who will be losing their jobs. My second thought is that we as a community need to continue to support our local businesses.”

Information provided to Shopko employees in Glasgow, suggested that the process of liquidating the store should begin in the coming days or weeks and could last between 10 to 12 weeks, depending.

In January, the Wisconsin-based retail group Specialty Retail Shops Holding Corp., which owns the Shopko stores, announced they had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy to restructure and save the company. At that time, Shopko closed a number of stores in the region including the Wolf Point and Plentywood, Mont., locations, but had indicated they were trying to keep the remaining stores open.

Court documents from the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Nebraska, posted online by Green Bay, Wisconsin’s Fox 11 News, said the order to close all stores occurred on Feb. 8, 2019, and those documents list the “expected close date” for the retail locations as June 16, 2019.