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Americanas Reduced Its Store Network After Judicial Recovery, With Significant Closures in 2025, Changes in Traditional Locations, and Impacts on Customer Base and Jobs, in a Process Monitored by Creditors, the Market, and Regulatory Agencies.
Closure of Americanas Stores in 2025
Americanas shrank its network and ended 2025 with 1,470 units in operation, after closing 193 points of sale throughout the year, according to numbers released in reports based on information from the monitoring of the judicial recovery.
The company filed for judicial recovery in January 2023, after revealing accounting inconsistencies that led to a broad restructuring of the business.
At the time of the filing, the company reported having 1,880 stores open.
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In December 2024, there were 1,663.
By December 2025, the total dropped to 1,470, an 11.6% reduction over 12 months, according to the same surveys.
The case gained public attention on January 11, 2023, when Americanas informed the market about the existence of billion-dollar accounting inconsistencies.
Subsequently, the process moved to judicial recovery and was monitored by judicial administrators and oversight agencies, such as the Securities and Exchange Commission (CVM).
Judicial Recovery and Transformation Plan of Americanas
The company has presented the closure of stores as part of a redesign of the business, focusing on optimizing operations and adjusting the shopping experience to consumer behavior.
In announcements cited by reports covering the restructuring, Americanas described this movement within a “transformation plan”.
Throughout 2025, market coverage also recorded a slowdown in the pace of cuts towards the end of the year.
Still, the outcome solidified a retail presence smaller than that seen at the beginning of the process, with direct impacts on the company’s physical presence in different cities.
Shopping Iguatemi: Closure of Americanas Store in São Paulo
Among the closures, the exit of the Shopping Iguatemi unit in the capital was highlighted in reports as one of the most symbolic closures of the period.
The closure, according to reports, occurred after a deadlock that had dragged on since 2023 and involved negotiations between the retailer and the shopping center.
Reports published in the media also described signs of contraction in the operation of the store before the closure, such as reduced assortment and shelves with fewer products.
As it is a high-visibility address, the deactivation came to be cited as an indicator of the resizing of the network in 2025.
Duque de Caxias: Sale of Store and Change of Operation
The reorganization of the operation included the sale of at least one commercial point, according to reports.
A unit located on Avenida Nilo Peçanha, in Duque de Caxias, in the Baixada Fluminense, was sold to the Guanabara supermarket chain, which will operate at the address.
News about the case reported that the transaction was communicated to Cade.
The change was also cited as an example of how spaces previously used by department stores can be occupied by other consumption formats, depending on the profile of the surroundings and the strategies of the companies involved.
Decline in Active Customers and Effects on Operation
Alongside the reduction in stores, reports that analyzed the period’s reports recorded a decline in the active customer base.
According to this data, Americanas ended December 2025 with 40.8 million active customers, after a series of declines throughout the year.
The same information mentions that this level was below a peak indicated for April 2024.
The company, in turn, has attributed the evolution of the indicators to the restructuring process and operational adjustments made since the judicial recovery.
Layoffs at Americanas: Staff Cuts Since 2023
The downsizing also affected the workforce, with figures reported at different times and covered by the press.
In July 2023, Americanas reported having laid off 1,404 employees in a week and, at that time, indicated a total of 35,741 employees, according to a report from CNN Brasil based on a document from the process.
Later, in December 2023, reports based on information attributed to Reuters recorded 5,526 layoffs in the week of November 27 to December 3.
In that same period, it was reported that the company had ended with 33,861 workers.
Monthly activity reports from the judicial administration also began to detail the personnel situation.
A document with a base date of January 31, 2024 indicated 32,296 employees under CLT regulation, considering Americanas S.A. and ST Importações.
Based on these reports, part of the news consolidated a total of 10,435 layoffs between January 2023 and February 2024.
The numbers vary according to the time frame of each update and the set of companies included in each report.
CVM and New Inquiries into the Americanas Case
The restructuring is occurring under continuous oversight.
In January 2026, the CVM announced the initiation of new inquiries related to the case, according to public communication from the regulatory body.
Meanwhile, the judicial recovery continues with periodic reports and updates presented to the court.
In retail, the most visible changes for consumers continue to be the closure of units, the replacement of stores with other brands at certain addresses, and fluctuations in operational indicators disclosed throughout the process.
Restructuring and Recent Signals Reported to the Market
The execution of the plan advanced after the judicial approval in February 2024, a milestone that formalized the implementation stage of the measures provided for in the process.
Since then, market reports and updates from the judicial recovery monitoring began to indicate movements of operational reorganization, such as the review of the store portfolio and efficiency adjustments.
Recent coverage also recorded improvements in liquidity indicators disclosed by the company in reports from the period, even though the customer base showed a contraction throughout 2025.
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