PINELLAS PARK, Fla. — A Walmart Neighborhood Market store in Pinellas Park will be closing after the location didn't perform as well as leaders hoped.
In an email to 10 Tampa Bay, Walmart's Communications Director Brian Little explained the decision to close the Walmart, located at 6900 US Highway 19 North, came after a careful and thoughtful review process.
The store will be closed to the public by Friday, March 10, and employees will be eligible for transfer.
"This decision was not made lightly and was reached only after a thorough review process," the email read, in part.
With nearly 5,000 stores across the U.S., Little says some locations don't meet financial expectations – with the Pinellas Park store being one of them.
The decision to close is based on several factors – including historic and current financial performance but not store leadership and associates.
"We hope that the 71 associates at the store will want to continue their career with Walmart by transferring to another nearby store," Little wrote in the email.
There are seven Walmart Supercenters and five Neighborhood Markets in and around Pinellas Park.
“We are grateful to the customers who have given us the privilege of serving them at our 6900 US Highway 19 North, Pinellas Park location," Little said in a statement. "We look forward to serving them at our other stores in the surrounding communities and on walmart.com.”
Editor's note: This story has been updated to clarify the Walmart Neighborhood Market store will close. A traditional Walmart Supercenter store is located north at 8001 U.S. Highway 19 North.
