Shopko closings

Overall retail sales have climbed steadily in South Dakota in recent years, but who is getting the revenue, and how, is changing. As online retail continues to surge, chain stores grow in number and low-priced dollar stores arrive in small towns in droves, maintaining a successful brick-and-mortar small retail business continues to be a challenge.

Weeks after announcing store closures in four South Dakota towns, Shopko officials say they will shutter stores in two more communities. Find that story and in-depth coverage of the retail moves here.

The shuttering of Shopko stores in Chamberlain, Custer, Dell Rapids, Redfield, Wagner and Webster spotlights the fragility of rural retail economies. The resulting job losses, decreased access to necessities and sales-tax reductions could weaken community viability.