More Massive Retailers Are Now Closing in California

April 1, 2024

Updated on January 10, 2025

More massive retailers are now closing in California due to a rise in crime with its governor announcing of a possible solution.

Fast-food and retail chains are pulling out of a major California city plagued by mass lootings, car break-ins, and gunpoint robberies, reports The US Sun.

Community leaders in Oakland are desperate for solutions after Target, Starbucks, and Taco Bell all shuttered locations due to rising crime rates.

Crime has steadily declined in major California cities since 2020, but Oakland continues to have disturbing rates with no clear end in sight, reports the outlet.

The San Francisco Bay city has made headlines for seeing mass lootings where crowds of masked thieves boldly plunder local businesses, leaving owners in a constant state of fear.

Car theft has become so prevalent that locals are leaving their empty vehicles unlocked with the trunks ajar so criminals won’t bash their windshields in to sift through their belongings.

Last year alone, robbery jumped up 38% and burglaries increased 23%, according to police data seen by ABC affiliate KGO.

In an effort to make a dent in the alarming rates, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced last week that 480 surveillance cameras would be installed throughout the city.

Here’s a timeline of retailers who have pulled out of Oakland, California:

In May 2023, a Whole Foods shuttered
Also in May 2023, a Nordstrom closed
In September 2023, Target announced that three stores in the Bay Area would close
In October 2023, Starbucks announced that seven stores are shutting down in San Francisco and Oakland
In March 2024, multiple Taco Bell dining rooms closed due to crime
Also in March 2024, an In-N-Out Burger closed after 20 years of business

While local leaders look for solutions, retail chains continue to pull out of the city in 2024.

Last week, In-N-Out Burger shuttered its Oakland location after nearly 20 years of business and cited crime as a motivating factor.

It was the first outlet that the California-based chain had closed since its inception in 1948.

Fans took to social media to mourn the closure and ask when the so-called retail apocalypse would end.

“So sad. Once upon a time, Oakland was the place to be and live,” one local said.

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Also Read: This Massive Mall Retailer Is Now Closing In California

Other Economy News Today

Another trucking company now files an unexpected bankruptcy, with plans to restructure its businesses.

Pride Group, a family-owned trucking company, has its headquarters in Mississauga, Ontario, near Toronto, but operates in the U.S. as well.

“We are a privately held, diversified group whose subsidiaries and affiliates operate in a variety of industries including transportation, logistics, heavy-duty equipment dealerships, equipment leasing & rentals, real-estate holdings, and full-service fleet management.

PGE operates and manages businesses in both Canada and the United States, employing over 500 people,” the company shared on its website.

The company has struggled in recent months and has taken steps to restructure its business, reports TheStreet.

This has included a bankruptcy filing, which the company explained on its website.

“Pride Group Holdings Inc. and other applicant companies (the “Applicants”) sought and obtained protection under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (the “CCAA”) pursuant to an Initial Order of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (Commercial List) (the “Initial Order”).

Other companies affiliated with the Applicants (the “Additional Stay Parties”, and together with Applicants, the “Pride Group”), although not applicants themselves, were granted a stay of proceedings as part of these proceedings under the CCAA (the “CCAA Proceedings”) for the duration of 10-days, subject to extension thereafter as the Court deems appropriate.”

That’s the Canadian version of bankruptcy, but there has also been a U.S. filing.

“Certain companies in the Pride Group will file cases under Chapter 15 of Title 11 of the United States Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware (the “Chapter 15 Cases”) seeking recognition of the CCAA Proceedings within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States and other related relief,” the company shared.

Pride Group has a complicated array of holdings that includes 16 transport companies, 45 real estate holding companies, and 10 other holding companies founded and controlled by Sulakhan “Sam” Johal, Truck News reported.

The company has roughly $2 billion in debt, and the company blames the current freight market for its troubles.

“Spot freight prices, diesel prices, and interest rate trends were all initially favorable for the trucking industry following the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.

They have all deteriorated significantly since that time.

The bottom-line result is made significantly worse by virtue of the increased trucking and logistics supply that was brought to market during the upturn, which is currently sitting as unused excess capacity in the market,” according to a court filing.

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Also Read: A Giant Company Now Announces Unexpected Layoffs in Maryland

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