“Another one bites the dust.”

If you wanted to grab a pair of Bose headphones to listen to the famous Queen song on full blast, you might have to hurry to the nearest Bose store before it closes. As it becomes increasingly difficult to justify investment in premises, staff and inventory, it has been announced that Bose will be pulling out of physical retail, closing more 119 outlet storefronts in networks across North America, Europe, Japan and Australia.

The company will maintain 130 other stores in China, the United Arab Emirates, India and South Korea.

Bose, a U.S. sound equipment company founded in 1964 by MIT professor Amar Bose, has maintained a strong position in products that range from home audio systems, speakers and sound cancelling headphones to professional audio products and car audio systems. In 2019, the company generated about $4 billion and employed more than 9,000 people.

But consumer trends are shifting. Users now prefer to shop online and receive the product at home, work or at a distribution point rather than walk into an actual store and shop around. As a result, it makes economic sense that storefronts are unnecessary, and unfortunately, hundreds of employees will be laid off. However, because the Framingham, Massachusetts-based company is privately held, it is not revealing exactly how many workers will be impacted by the decision.