Three Apple Store locations in struggling malls are set to close permanently as summer kicks off, with one of them the controversial unionized store in Towson, Maryland.

The stores in question are Apple North County, in Escondido, California, Apple Trumbull in Trumbull, Connecticut, and Apple Towson Town Center in Towson, Maryland. Notably, Apple Towson was Apple's first unionized store.

Most employees will be shifted to nearby locations with no further action required by the employee, provided they agree to stay with the company. The unionized Towson employees will be eligible to apply for open roles at Apple, as per the existing bargaining agreement.

The closest Apple store to Towson's soon to be closed location is Columbia, Maryland. The Columbia location is about 26 miles away.

Apple issued a statement to MacRumors explaining the situation:

At Apple, we are constantly striving to deliver exceptional service and great experiences for our customers. As we continue investing to expand and enhance our retail stores and offerings worldwide, we remain deliberate about evaluating our existing locations to ensure that we can meet our customers' needs in the best way. Following the departure of several retailers and declining conditions at Trumbull Mall, the Shops at North County, and Towson Town Center, we've made the difficult decision to close our stores at these locations.

Our team members at Trumbull and North County will continue their roles at nearby Apple Retail stores. Towson employees will be eligible to apply for open roles at Apple in accordance with the collective bargaining agreement. We look forward to continuing to serve customers at nearby stores and on Apple.com, the Apple Store app, and at Apple Authorized Resellers and Service Providers throughout the states.

The move isn't terribly surprising, the United States mall ecosystem has been struggling for quite some time. This is largely in part due to the prevalence of online shopping.

That doesn't mean that Apple plans on scaling back its brick-and-mortar offerings. In fact, the company seems keen on expanding.

The main difference is that it now opts for stores in commercial districts, rather than malls. This prevents Apple from relying on indoor foot traffic, which dwindles as other less successful retailers shutter their mall locations.

In September 2025, Apple opened Apple Downtown Detroit in Bedrock's historic building. In January of the same year, it opened Apple Miami Worldcenter in the city's downtown district.

Towson's union pushes back

The IAM union that backed the Towson workers are very unhappy about Apple's claims. It shared the following statement with AppleInsider.

The IAM Union is outraged by Apple's decision to close its Towson, Md., store — the first unionized Apple retail location in the United States — and abandon both its workers and a community that relies on it for critical services and its unique access to public transit. Apple's claim that the collective bargaining agreement prevents relocation is simply false and raises serious concerns that this closure is a cynical attempt to bust the union.

We are exploring all legal options and will work with elected officials and allies to hold Apple accountable. We stand with our IAM Coalition of Organized Retail Employees (IAM CORE) members and the community that depends on this store for essential access and support."

The legal battle between the union and Apple will surely be another to set precedent in the United States. Ever since the first Apple Store unionized, there has been a tension between Apple and the few unions formed within.

Some might view the closing of the Towson store as an attack against the union itself. However, as was previously noted, the store was within a dying mall.

It will be up to the courts to decide if Apple was truly unable to simply relocate the unionized members or not. While the union bored tends to vote against Apple, the company has pulled out some wins when cases go to trial.

Updated April 9, 7:37 p.m.: added the quote from the IAM Union.