NEW YORK CITY—At first glance it would seem that it's been a pretty tough week for hard goods retailers, with Radio Shack announcing plans to close 1,100 stores and Staples saying it will close 225 units over the next two years.

But the latter may not be as bad as it seems, though it acknowledges that its shoppers increasingly are buying online. Staples Chairman and CEO Ronald Sargent says there's still room to grow, even if it's not as much as he originally thought.

“I'm not sure we need as many stores today as I thought five or 10 years ago,” Sargent said at the company's fourth quarter conference call. “Previously I thought maybe 4,000 stores was probably the right number in North America. Today, in North America, there's probably room for 2,800 or 3,000 stores. Just in the U.S., there's probably room for 2,400 stores.”

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