Oklahoma loses more jobs in 2026 as Macy’s shuts down warehouse

Workers Get Less Than 3 Months Notice

Employees at the Macy’s fulfillment center in Owasso, Oklahoma, walked into work on January 8, 2026, and learned they had less than three months left.

The facility will cease operations on March 28, ending over a decade as one of the region’s largest employers.

The closure is part of Macy’s ongoing efforts to modernize and streamline its supply chain operations under a turnaround plan the company launched in 2024.

Workers were offered severance packages and help finding new jobs, but for many, the news came as a shock.

The Building Curved With Earth

The center at 7120 E. 76th St. North features a 1.3-million-square-foot footprint that expands to 2 million square feet with multilevel mezzanines.

The building is so massive that then-CEO Terry Lundgren remarked at its 2015 opening: “When we poured the foundation for this building, we actually had to calculate and take into consideration the curvature of the Earth.” At the time, the center was the largest of its kind for Macy’s. The warehouse handled direct-to-consumer shipping and store replenishment for Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s, processing everything from clothing to home goods.

It sat on a sprawling 72-acre site about 12 miles north of Tulsa, connected to major highways that made it easy to ship packages across the country.

Oklahoma Offered Big Incentives

When Macy’s announced the project in 2013, Oklahoma rolled out the red carpet.

Macy’s could receive up to $21 million in tax breaks and incentives for its $170 million order fulfillment center to be built in Tulsa County.

The largest of those tax breaks came from Tulsa County, which created a Tax Incentive Finance District that exempted Macy’s from property taxes on new construction for multiple years.

The county assessor’s office estimated the company could save more than $1.7 million per year.

Macy’s chose Owasso because of partnerships with the State of Oklahoma, Tulsa County, Cherokee Nation Businesses, and the City of Owasso.

The 2015 Promise: 1,500 Jobs

Governor Mary Fallin announced about 1,500 new employment opportunities coming to Tulsa County when Macy’s broke ground. Full-time and part-time jobs would be available, as well as additional temporary seasonal opportunities each year.

The center opened in August 2015 and quickly became a fixture in the local economy, with operations designed to employ up to 2,500 full-time, part-time, and seasonal workers at peak.

For a decade, the jobs kept coming.

Bold New Chapter Means Cuts

The closure fits into CEO Tony Spring’s “Bold New Chapter” strategy, announced in February 2024 and designed to return the company to sustainable, profitable sales growth.

The plan includes closing approximately 150 underproductive stores over three years while investing in its 350 go-forward Macy’s locations through fiscal 2026.

The strategy is meant to deliver an estimated $235 million in cost savings by 2026. Older facilities that lack automation are being phased out in favor of newer technology.

A Robot Facility Took Over

About three months before announcing the Owasso closure, Macy’s celebrated the grand opening of its new customer fulfillment center in China Grove, North Carolina, in October 2025.

Outfitted with the latest automation solutions, it is the company’s largest and most technologically advanced facility to date.

The 2.5-million-square-foot facility has the largest storage capacity and is designed to deliver the highest productivity in the company’s network.

Automation at Macy’s first two upgraded facilities more than doubled productivity, making older warehouses like Owasso look expensive by comparison.

Retail Layoffs Surged in 2025

Macy’s workers are joining a growing wave of displaced retail employees.

Retailers announced 92,989 job cuts last year, a dramatic 123% jump from 2024, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

In the first five months of 2025 alone, U.S. retailers eliminated close to 76,000 jobs, an increase of 274% from the same period in 2024.

Well-known department store retailers such as JCPenney and Macy’s announced store closures, while Forever 21 and Joann shuttered all remaining locations after filing for bankruptcy.

The shift to online shopping and rising costs have squeezed traditional retail hard.

Severance Offers, Few Transfers

Macy’s says it is supporting affected workers, including transfer opportunities where available, as well as severance and outplacement resources where applicable.

But transfer options are limited. The nearest comparable Macy’s facilities are hundreds of miles away, making relocation impractical for most employees.

Local Leaders Scramble to Help

The Owasso Chamber of Commerce is actively communicating with Macy’s, the City of Owasso, the Tulsa Chamber, and local partners to proactively get the workforce reengaged as quickly as possible.

Officials hope to connect workers with other regional employers. “At this time, it is too early to determine the full economic impact of the closure,” the City of Owasso said in a statement.

A Giant Building Needs a Tenant

The long-term assets, including the facility itself, will begin to undergo considerations for future economic development.

Finding a company that needs a 2-million-square-foot warehouse in northeastern Oklahoma will not be easy.

The building’s size and location could attract e-commerce fulfillment operations or manufacturing, but deals of that magnitude take time.

For now, the massive structure will sit empty while officials search for a replacement.

Macy’s Stock Climbed Anyway

Despite the layoffs and closures, investors rewarded Macy’s cost-cutting. The company’s shares rose over 30-33% across 2025, buoyed by cost-cutting and a focus on higher-performing assets.

Wall Street sees a leaner company emerging from the turnaround, even as workers in places like Owasso pay the price.

Over a Decade Was the Deal

Oklahoma bet big on Macy’s in 2013, offering millions in incentives for what leaders hoped would be decades of employment.

The company invested more than $170 million in the facility, and for over 10 years, it delivered jobs and economic activity.

But the retail world changed faster than anyone expected. Automation, e-commerce shifts, and cost pressures made the Owasso warehouse expendable.

The workers who built their careers there now have less than three months to figure out what comes next.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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