Nike closes stores, studios, and its flagship location

For the past few years, Nike has struggled to figure out its business model.

First, the retailer pulled away from some of its distribution partners to build more of its business around building a direct relationship with consumers. That model included building out its own fleet of stores and keeping more of its prized, limited-edition products for itself, rather than traditional retailers.

Analysts think the company made the wrong move with those efforts.

"We think it's becoming clearer that the ‘Consumer Direct Acceleration' strategy was a mistake," Wedbush analysts led by Tom Nikic told Retail Dive. "Essentially, the company's original pre-Covid ‘Consumer Direct' plan was doing just fine, but by ‘accelerating' the strategy in 2020, they focused too much on WHERE they were selling and lost focus of WHAT they were selling. Furthermore, it allowed a host of competitors to come in and chip away at [Nike]'s dominance of the industry."

Those are mistakes Nike has been working to fix, which has included rebuilding its retail partnerships, specifically with Dick's Sporting Goods, which now owns Foot Locker, and eliminating some of its own retail stores.

Nike has closed its Fitness Studios

Nike Fitness Studios were an attempt by the brand to enter the gym space. Those efforts have been abandoned by the sneaker and athletic clothing giant.

"Nike Studios, the boutique fitness concept the footwear giant launched in 2023 alongside FitLab, has shuttered or suspended operations across all of its locations in Texas and California, according to widespread social media posts from members and trainers," Athletech News reported.

FitLab co-founder and co-CEO Brian Kirkbride confirmed the transition in a statement to Athletech News.

Related: Why Nike's Q4 earnings aren't about numbers

"After careful consideration, the majority of the Nike Studios locations will be transitioning to FitLab's owned portfolio of fitness brands," Kirkbride said, citing yoga brand Y7, small-group strength training brand Racked, Mile High Run Club and XPT, a performance wellness brand founded by Laird Hamilton and Gabby Reece, as the receiving brands."

Any locations that did not transition, were closed. The chain has also been selectively closing a small amount of its self-branded retail stores.

Nike commented broadly on its retail strategy during its fourth-quarter earnings call.

"Over time, we will continue to rezone and elevate our fleet and close the doors that are no longer aligned to our strategy. At our scale, this takes time. We're not finished yet. I'm confident our investments in the integrated marketplace will pay dividends for years to come," CEO Elliott Hill said.

Nike has made deep cuts

Nike has also made other cuts as the company has adjusted its business model.

"As part of a restructuring announced in late April, Nike closed its tech offices in three locations and consolidated operations into two hubs: its Oregon headquarters and the Nike India Technology Center. The closures were tied to roughly 1,400 layoffs across Nike's Global Operations team, just under 2 percent of its global workforce," according to Inc.

Nike presented that change as simple consolidation and a chance to operate more efficiently.

"We're reshaping our Technology team to sharpen alignment with the business, build leaner teams, and accelerate what matters most," Chief Operating Officer Venkatesh Alagirisamy said in an April 26 note to employees. "This means consolidating our technology footprint, streamlining our structure to move with greater speed and focus, and doubling down on the locations where our work gets done."

Nike closes its flagship store

In addition to shutting down Nike Studios and consolidating its tech teams, Nike also closed down its flagship New York store.

The five-story, 55,000-square-foot retail store, once branded by Nike as the "Future of Sport Retail," closed permanently in January.

"Spanning five floors of the historic 1853 Prescott House Hotel building, the emporium was much more than a traditional shoe store. It functioned as a multisport sanctuary, featuring dedicated trial zones for basketball, running, and soccer-complete with in-store treadmills and half-courts that allowed athletes to put products to the test in real-time," according to HypeBeast.

The flagship closure reflects Nike's broader effort to shrink and reposition its owned retail footprint rather than simply expand branded locations.

Ikea has since purchased the location.

What's next for Nike?

Taken together, the moves show Nike is reducing investments that no longer support its evolving retail strategy while rebuilding relationships with wholesale partners.

While Nike has struggled to figure out its exact business model, the company's results have stabilized.

• Full-year revenues were $46.4 billion, flat on a reported basis and down 2% on a currency-neutral basis.
• Fourth quarter revenues were $11 billion, down 1% on a reported basis and down 4%
  
  on a currency-neutral basis.
  
  Source: Nike Q4 earnings release

CFO Matthew Friend put the results into perspective in his remarks in the earnings release.

"We delivered fourth quarter results in line with our expectations, demonstrating financial discipline in an increasingly challenging operating environment, where sell-through remains challenged," he said. "We are improving the health of our business, managing our product portfolio and investing in marketplace elevation, while adjusting our operating costs for greater efficiency over time."

Nike needs to evolve

As a former Nike customer with over 30 years experience in covering the retail space, Nike lost my business because it failed to evolve. I own some Brooks sneakers, some New Balance, and wear Skechers Slip-Ons in my day-to-day life because I need comfort and support these days more than athletic performance.

Nike does not make a line that meets my needs. The company also left the door open for new competitors.

"Nike's wholesale exodus created an unprecedented opportunity for hungry competitors. Brands like Hoka, On Running, Brooks, and New Balance didn't simply occupy Nike's abandoned shelf space - they revolutionized the relationships Nike had neglected," retail analyst Shah Mohammed said.

More Nike:

• Nike Q4 2026 Earnings Call: Recap of $NKE Earnings, Outlook
• Why Nike's Q4 earnings aren't about numbers
• Veteran analyst seriously resets Nike stock target amid key issues

Nike began its pivot to a DTC model in 2017 when it significantly slashed a number of retail partners including Big 5 Sporting Goods, Dunham's Sports, Urban Outfitters, Dillard's and Zappos.

That's a change the company has since walked back.

"Having a bigger direct-to-consumer business is a positive," Tom Nikic, senior vice president of equity research at Wedbush Securities, told Modern Retail. "I do think that having a closer connection with the consumer is important. But I think where they may have kind of misjudged the marketplace was that the consumer wants choice… [and] will still go to the multi-brand retailers."

Related: JCPenney closes more locations, 119 face uncertain fate

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This story was originally published July 1, 2026 at 2:33 PM.