While we have noted that most of the stores that have been operating in brick-and-mortar form have been pivoting to online form in order to reduce costs as well as attract the online community that likes to order things at their homes and even return them if they don’t like it. However, we are seeing the trend reversed by HomeGoods which is a very popular destination for e-commerce as the company says that it is closing its e-commerce store in order to focus on its brick-and-mortar stores and also expand them as much as possible.
As per a report from the Parade, “The chain of discount furnishing stores, owned by TJX Companies, alerted customers of the sudden change in an email sent out just days before the closure will take effect”. “We’ve made the decision to focus our resources on our brick-and-mortar stores,” the message read in part. The email, which was shared with customers on Wednesday, Oct. 18, also added that the brand would be announcing “many new store openings” in the coming weeks. The statement went on to explain that the brand decided to close its online shop–which only launched in Sept. 2021–to better the experience of customers that visit its physical stores, where it will continue to provide “a large selection of quality goods at incredible savings.” According to the email, HomeGoods’ online presence will cease to exist starting this Sunday, Oct. 22. The last day to shop online will be Saturday, Oct. 21.
In an earnings call in August this year, a TJX representative said “As to e-commerce, overall, it remains a very small percentage of our business,” and added that “We continue to add new merchandise to our sites so that shoppers can see something new every time they visit.” Another representative confirmed the online store closure, saying that there will be an “online store closure, also noting it would only affect HomeGoods’ site. The spokesperson also told the outlet that after Oct. 21, customers will still be able to use HomeGoods gift cards and merchandise credit at other TJX-owned stores and sites, including TJ Maxx, Marshalls, HomeSense, and Sierra”.
