The Walgreens Superstore at Broad and Chestnut is Closing in February

It looks like the three story, 26,000 sq. ft. space at Broad and Chestnut has been tough to stay occupied. What was once a prominent Borders bookstore now Walgreens will once again be vacant come the end of February.

The flagship Walgreens which was the national pharmacy’s cornerstone in Philly’s urban market will shutter on February 28th at 3 pm. Opened in 2013 Walgreen’s push to open superstores that also worked as mini-markets was one of nine the pharmacy opened in various cities.

In a statement given to the Philadelphia Inquirer, Walgreens spokesperson Fraser Engerman, stated, “We are focused on creating the right network of stores in the right locations to best meet the needs of the communities we serve,” he said. “We have made the difficult decision to close this location. There are a number of factors that we take into consideration including dynamics of the local market and changing buying habits of our customers.”

It seems as though these chain stores are having a rough time in this pocket of Center City. This closure comes on the heels of Wawa’s latest closure right down the street on 13th and Chestnut as well as the Wawa Flagship store located at Broad at Walnut.

Paul Levy, head of the downtown economic development agency Center City District, also added that a number of other factors weighed in on these closings including the pandemic as well as a “concerning rise in retail thefts –– which increased nearly 20% citywide over the last year, according to police data –– but said the primary driver was overall downtown foot traffic that is still 38% lower than before the pandemic. He attributed the latter to the economically bruising loss of many office workers, tens of thousands of whom were placed on remote work or relocated during the pandemic,” He told the Inquirer.