Grocery Outlet plans to close eight Maryland stores amid nationwide optimization and financial restructuring efforts

Eight Maryland stores identified for closure

Grocery Outlet Bargain Market is preparing to close eight locations in Maryland as part of a broader plan to reduce losses and recalibrate its store footprint. The stores slated to close are in Catonsville, Cockeysville, Columbia, Nottingham, Owings Mills, Rosedale, Westminster and Hagerstown.

Other Maryland locations are expected to remain open, including stores in Eldersburg, Elkton and Glen Burnie.

Closures are part of a nationwide plan affecting 36 stores

The Maryland shutdowns are included in a companywide “Optimization Plan” adopted on March 2, 2026. The plan calls for the closure of 36 financially underperforming stores across the chain, representing roughly 6% of its total store base. The plan also provides for terminating or subleasing affected store leases and exiting a lease tied to a distribution-center facility the company said it is no longer using.

The company also disclosed that it expects to end operator agreements connected to the closing locations. Grocery Outlet’s model relies on independent operators who run individual stores under the company’s brand and supply system.

Financial context: a sharp swing to a full-year loss

The closures follow Grocery Outlet’s fiscal 2025 results (year ended Jan. 3, 2026), in which the company reported net sales of about $4.69 billion alongside a net loss of $224.9 million. A year earlier, the company reported a profit. In its public communications around the results, company leadership described the performance as unacceptable and said the business had expanded too quickly, prompting a pullback and increased focus on execution.

The Optimization Plan is intended to strengthen long-term profitability and cash flow generation by narrowing the store base to locations performing better financially.

What the company says happens next

Grocery Outlet has indicated it expects restructuring charges tied to the Optimization Plan during fiscal 2026, and it has also flagged additional gross-profit pressure related to discounting inventory as certain stores are wound down. The company’s fiscal 2026 outlook reflects the impact of store closures and a calendar shift to a 52-week year, compared with a 53-week year in fiscal 2025.

Implications for Maryland shoppers and workers

For customers, the closures reduce the chain’s reach in the Baltimore-area suburbs and parts of central and western Maryland, including Hagerstown, where Grocery Outlet previously established an early foothold in the state. The company has not publicly provided store-by-store closure dates in Maryland in its financial filings and earnings materials, and it has not released location-specific employment figures connected to the eight sites.

• Maryland closures: Catonsville, Cockeysville, Columbia, Nottingham, Owings Mills, Rosedale, Westminster, Hagerstown
• Maryland stores expected to remain open: Eldersburg, Elkton, Glen Burnie
• Plan adopted: March 2, 2026

As the Optimization Plan proceeds, the company’s next updates are expected through regulatory filings and future earnings communications, where timing, lease actions and any additional operational changes are typically detailed.