TJX lost $10B in profits last year, expects pandemic's woes to continue

Photo | Grant Welker TJX Cos. is the parent company of TJ Maxx.

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TJX Cos. stores worldwide were closed for about one-quarter of the year in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic, and the Framingham retailer says it expects pandemic-related costs and operational limits to continue, depending in part on consumer activity.

Changes in customers' willingness to shop in stores and a broader effect of the ongoing pandemic could continue to impact business operations and financial performance, TJX said in an annual earnings report Wednesday. The owner of T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, HomeGoods and others, which relies far more than its retail competitors on in-store sales, said it has seen reduced customer traffic and sales declines in most of its divisions.

The company cited pandemic-related financial struggles as potentially risking the viability of its suppliers or logistics providers, which has already increased costs and interrupted its supply chain.

TJX finished its fiscal 2021 with net sales of more than $32 billion, a drop of nearly $9.6 billion, or 23%, from the prior year. TJX previously estimated pandemic-related store closures resulted in a revenue loss of $950 million to $1.05 billion.

Nonetheless, TJX opened 43 new stores last year and continues to eye eventually growing to 6,275 stores from 4,572 today. Its total employment rose over the year by 34,000, or 12%, to reach 320,000 worldwide.