Dive Brief:

• Radio Shack will close as many as 1,100 underperforming stores, double the number it had announced earlier this year, the company said Tuesday.

• It’s the second time in a year the retailer drastically increased the number of stores it said it would likely close.

• In addition to announcing the store closures, the retailer reported Q4 sales at stores open more than a year fell 19% and said some suppliers are demanding letters of credit.

Dive Insight:

Last month when Radio Shack announced it would close some 500 stores, it was coming off an exuberantly self-deprecating Super Bowl ad that, in its dorky way, told the world that it knew what it had to do. But things are already looking more desperate. The retailer is closing more stores and asking for further patience in its turnaround. Since the Fort Worth, Texas, electronics chain began its restructuring last year, it has started revamping product lines and introduced a concept store plan to better compete with big box retailers. Even big box electronics rival Best Buy is struggling with many of the same issues as Radio Shack: sagging mobile sales, discount pressure, and a need to reformat stores with sleeker spaces and more knowledgeable, customer service-oriented staff. But Best Buy looks better positioned for a rebound than Radio Shack, and the smaller, cash-strapped retailer is running out of time. No surprise that observers are less sanguine about Radio Shack’s prospects than even last month.