J.C. Penney to close three stores in Tennessee, five in Georgia

FILE - In this Aug. 16, 2005 file photo, customers walk out of a J.C. Penny department store in Dallas. J.C. Penney said Friday, Feb. 24, 2017, that it will be closing anywhere from 130 to 140 stores as well as two distribution centers over the next several months as it aims to improve profitability in the era of online shopping.(AP Photo/Matt Slocum) FILE - In this Aug. 16, 2005 file photo, customers walk out of a J.C. Penny department store in Dallas. J.C. Penney said Friday, Feb. 24, 2017, that it will be closing anywhere from 130 to 140 stores as well as two distribution centers over the next several months as it aims to improve profitability in the era of online shopping.(AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

By Staff Report March 17, 2017 2 min read

J.C. Penney & Co. announced today that it will close 138 stores by June, including stores in Knoxville, Greeneville and Union City, Tenn.

J.C. Penney will keep its store open in Hamilton Place Mall in Chattanooga and at the Bradley Square Mall in Cleveland. But the retail giant said it is reducing operations and starting liquidation sales at the shuttered stores in April to help cut expenses “to advance sustainable growth and long-term profitability.”

Over the past two years, J.C. Penney closed its stores in Hixson and Dalton, Ga.

The company continues to operate about 900 stores nationwide and had about 105,000 full and part-time employees last year.

Liquidation sales at the 138 stores to close this spring will start next month, and most of the stores will be shut by mid-June, the company said.