After almost 4 years, Walmart throws in towel in Boulder
boulder» Walmart, we hardly knew ye. The mega-retailer on Tuesday announced plans to close its Boulder outpost, a Neighborhood Market concept, less than four years after opening. June 16 will be the last day of business for the grocery store at 2972 Iris Ave.
Company spokesperson Anne Hatfield said the decision was motivated by the changing nature of retail, including the shift to online shopping.
“We’re evolving as a company to make sure we’re keeping up with those changes,” she said. “Our customers want to shop when and how they want (and) we need to make sure we’re providing that right blend of e-commerce offerings and physical stores.”
Hatfield said axing the Boulder store was an “isolated event” — no other closures are planned at this time. The Neighborhood Market concept, launched in 1998, is going strong, she said, with more than 600 locations around the country.
About 70 employees in Boulder will be given the option to transfer to a nearby store. There is a Walmart Supercenter in Lafayette, two in Broomfield and two in Longmont.
The 53,500-square-foot Neighborhood Market opened in October 2013 to protests from Boulder residents. Rumors abounded in the community for more than a year before Walmart announced its intentions; permits filed for the space, formerly home to Ross and PetSmart, did not identify the operator.
Details in the filings, such as paint colors, floor plan and cart corrals, matched the company’s motif and fueled speculation and debate in the community about the world’s largest corporation — often maligned for its business practices — setting up shop in a liberal enclave.