Retail Stores in Malls Closing in Waves Nationwide

More than 3,500 mall-based stores are shutting down in the next couple of months in a giant wave of retail closures, Business Insider reported.

According to the business news outlet, department stores like JCPenney, Macy's, Sears, and Kmart are among those shuttering stores, along with chains like Crocs, BCBG, Abercrombie & Fitch, and Guess.

Some of the retailers are getting out to shift to all-online sales, including Bebe, which is closing all its approximately 170 stores to focus on online sales, Bloomberg reported.

According to Business Insider, Sears is shutting down about 10 percent of its Sears and Kmart locations – about 150 stores – and JCPenney is closing about 14 percent of its locations, or 138 stores.

Business Insider reported the nation's worst-performing malls – about 30 percent of all malls – will be hit the hardest by the store closures.

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