Should Verizon customers in NJ be worried about stores closing?

According to Verizon, there are over 3.2 million mobile subscribers in New Jersey. You can count me as one of them.

Now, when you need a new phone or tablet or when you have a glitchy service issue you can’t figure out on your own, you may have to visit one of their New Jersey store locations.

Justin Sullivan, Getty Images

According to their website, they have well over 140 of them here, so you may have your choice depending on where you live.

If you saw some recent headlines without clicking on and absorbing the actual story (something sadly more and more of us are doing) you may be worried about locations near you closing down making your options more limited.

That’s not exactly what is happening.

I read those articles for you. You’re welcome.

If you heard news about Verizon divesting itself of hundreds of stores across the country and cutting thousands of jobs, this is what it really means.

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Justin Sullivan, Getty Images

Yes, the country’s biggest wireless carrier is slicing 3,000 jobs, and yes, it’s looking to get rid of hundreds of retail stores, but it doesn’t exactly mean they’ll be closing.

Instead, it means those stores will not be directly under Verizon but rather operated by franchise owners. There are already about five times as many franchisee Verizon stores in the nation as ones owned directly by corporate.

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Verizon

According to nj.com, 274 Verizon stores will move to franchisee control. However, there’s no info on what states or locations those will be.

But even if it’s here in New Jersey, odds are you’re really not going to notice much difference. So relax, Verizon customers. Nothing much to see here; return to your homes. And maybe charge your phone when you get back inside.

Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Jeff Deminski only.

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