The grocery retailer will close 60 stores over 18 months as Q1 sales dropped slightly, affecting 5 percent of its 1,239 store locations.

Kroger will offer roles in other stores to all associates currently employed at affected stores,” the company said in an earnings report

Supermarket giant Kroger announced Friday, June 20, that it plans to close 60 stores over the next 18 months. The Cincinnati-based retailer didn't specify what locations in its 35-state footprint would be shuttered. The company operated 2,731 stores at the beginning of its fiscal year, indicating the cuts represent about 2% of all of its locations.