Atmos To Close Up Shop In The US, Focus On Asia Market
Written by djfrosty on October 5, 2023
Source: Scott Olson / Getty
After more than two decades in the retail game, the Tokyo-bred footwear store known as Atmos will be closing up shop once and for all… well, at least in the US.
According to Footwear News, the Foot Locker Inc. owned retailer will be shutting down shop in North America as it’s three brick-and-mortar stores will be closing down along with it’s website and will instead focus on it’s Japanese and Asia market. The news comes just two years after Foot Locker Inc. dropped $1.1 billion to acquire both Atmos and the West Coast shoe store chain, WSS.
While Atmos was known to carry a few exclusive sneaker drops over the years, heads would rarely get a dub on those website raffles, so sneakerheads aren’t too heartbroken over the news (no shots).
Footwear News reports:
“The Atmos brand has a unique and authentic identity, character and spirit. Given the strength of Atmos in Japan and Asia, we are focused on further investing in this market. Though in line with this focus and our plans for simplification, we have made the strategic decision to close our three Atmos stores in North America and our Atmos U.S. website,” said Atmos SVP and GM Patrick Walsh in a statement. “We are confident that this is the right move for Atmos and will help us continue to work in service of bringing sneaker and street culture to our customers in Asia.”
Well, we’ll have to wait and see if their plan to focus on the overseas markets payoff as Atmos has been struggling to keep up with competitors in the states.
In March, Mary Dillon — who was announced as the next CEO of Foot Locker Inc. in August 2022 — offered insights into the company’s plan to reach $9.5 billion in sales by 2026, which included a strategy with four key pillars. One pillar was to focus on optimizing its fleet and unique store banners. The retailer said Atmos would serve as a ground for innovation while being rooted in Japanese culture.
In August, Foot Locker Inc. announced a sales decline of 9.9 percent and a loss of $5 million for the second quarter. (At Atmos, comp sales fell 10 percent in the quarter.)
At the end of the day it’s all about the bottom line and unfortunately for Atmos, they just weren’t meeting the standards to keep their doors open in America.
What do y’all think of Atmos going out of business in the US? Will y’all miss it or nah? Let us know in the comments section below.