Walgreens to Close 1,200 Stores, Impact On MN Locations Unclear

MINNESOTA — More than 1,200 Walgreens stores will close over the next three years as the struggling drugstore chain attempts to complete a successful financial turnaround. The company announced Tuesday that about 500 of the closures will occur in the current fiscal year, which began in September.

Walgreens did not reveal which locations will be shuttered. The chain has about 8,500 stores in the United States and about 100 in Minnesota.

The closures were announced as the Deerfield, Illinois-based company reported a fourth-quarter loss of $3 billion. Still, Walgreens officials remained optimistic about the chain's long-term survival prospects.

"This turnaround will take time, but we are confident it will yield significant financial and consumer benefits over the long term," Walgreens CEO Tim Wentworth said in a statement.

Walgreens announced in June that a significant number of stores would be closing. At the time, Wentworth said, "We continue to face a difficult operating environment, including persistent pressures on the U.S.consumer and the impact of recent marketplace dynamics, which have eroded pharmacy margins."

According to the Walgreens website, the chain's Minnesota locations are in:

• Albert Lea, MN
• Alexandria, MN
• Andover, MN
• Anoka, MN
• Apple Valley, MN
• Arden Hills, MN
• Austin, MN
• Bemidji, MN
• Blaine, MN
• Bloomington, MN
• Brainerd, MN
• Brooklyn Center, MN
• Brooklyn Park, MN
• Buffalo, MN
• Burnsville, MN
• Cambridge, MN
• Champlin, MN
• Chanhassen, MN
• Chaska, MN
• Circle Pines, MN
• Cloquet, MN
• Coon Rapids, MN
• Cottage Grove, MN
• Crystal, MN
• Duluth, MN
• Eagan, MN
• East Grand Forks, MN
• Eden Prairie, MN
• Edina, MN
• Elk River, MN
• Excelsior, MN
• Fairmont, MN
• Faribault, MN
• Fergus Falls, MN
• Forest Lake, MN
• Fridley, MN
• Golden Valley, MN
• Grand Rapids, MN
• Hastings, MN
• Hibbing, MN
• Hilltop, MN
• Hopkins, MN
• Hutchinson, MN
• Inver Grove Heights, MN
• Lakeville, MN
• Little Falls, MN
• Mankato, MN
• Maple Grove, MN
• Maplewood, MN
• Mendota Heights, MN
• Minneapolis, MN
• Minnetonka, MN
• Monticello, MN
• Moorhead, MN
• Mound, MN
• Mounds View, MN
• New Hope, MN
• New Prague, MN
• New Ulm, MN
• North Mankato, MN
• North Oaks, MN
• Northfield, MN
• Oak Park Heights, MN
• Oakdale, MN
• Owatonna, MN
• Park Rapids, MN
• Plymouth, MN
• Red Wing, MN
• Richfield, MN
• Robbinsdale, MN
• Rochester, MN
• Rogers, MN
• Rosemount, MN
• Roseville, MN
• Saint Anthony, MN
• Saint Cloud, MN
• Saint Michael, MN
• Saint Paul, MN
• Sartell, MN
• Sauk Rapids, MN
• Savage, MN
• Shakopee, MN
• St Louis Park, MN
• Virginia, MN
• Waconia, MN
• Waite Park, MN
• Wayzata, MN
• West St Paul, MN
• White Bear Lake, MN
• Willmar, MN
• Winona, MN
• Woodbury, MN
• Worthington, MN