Ross bucks retail downtrend, will open 100 new stores

Bucking a retail trend of staff cutbacks and store closings, Ross Stores (ROST) announced Monday its plans to add about 100 new stores in fiscal 2018.

The company opened 23 Ross Dress for Less and six dd’s DISCOUNTS stores across 14 different states in February and March and plans an additional 75 Ross and 25 dd’s.

Retailers that have announced store closures include Abercrombie & Fitch, The Children’s Place, CVS, RadioShack and Sears/Kmart. The rise of e-commerce outlets, led by Amazon, makes it challenging for traditional brick-and-mortar retailers. 

According to the Ross’s president and chief development officer, Jim Fassio, the company is confident that it can expand Ross Dress for Less to 2,000 locations and dd’s Discounts to a chain of 500 stores. The company currently operates a total of 1,651 Ross Dress for Less and dd’s DISCOUNTS stores.