Advance Auto Parts is closing over 700 locations nationwide by mid-2025 due to underperforming sales, according to the company's third quarter earnings report released on Nov. 14.

The automotive parts retail chain has not yet announced which stores will be closing, but the report said the shuttered stores will include 523 corporate-owned locations, 204 independently-operated locations and 4 distribution centers.

As of Oct. 5, the company had 4,781 operational stores. While over 200 of these stores are located in New England, with 87 in Massachusetts, it is unclear whether the region's locations will be affected by the closures.

Here's what we know so far.

Why is Advance Auto Parts closing locations?

According to the earnings report, the closures are part of a "strategic optimization program" to improve business performance. Sales have continued to go down since last year, decreasing 2.3% in Quarter 3 of 2024, a difference of $100 million in net sales from Quarter 3 last year.

"We are pleased to have made progress on our strategic actions,” Advance Auto Parts president and CEO Shane O’Kelly said of the decision to close stores. “We are charting a clear path forward and introducing a new three-year financial plan, with a focus on executing core retail fundamentals to improve the productivity of all our assets and to create shareholder value."

Other aspects of the strategic financial plan include consolidating distribution centers, managing prices and opening 60 market hub locations by mid-2027.

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How many Advance Auto Parts stores are in Massachusetts?

Currently, there are 87 Advance Auto Parts locations in Mass. and over 200 locations throughout all of New England.