Sears to close 100 to 120 Kmart, Sears stores

[Artois]

I'm shocked, that even in the eighties, a major corporation was handing out cash instead of checks. Wow :eek:

[Odysseus]

I worked for K-Mart when I was in school. I don't think I lasted more than a month or two. The store was filthy and as a stock boy they wanted me to wear a shirt and tie.

They paid you in cash which was interesting. I know the local muggers all loved it.

And I'm sure that the IRS didn't. I wonder if you were even on their books.

[Apocalypse]

Seems to be getting worse.

Sears to 'Unload' 1,200 Stores?

Sears might "unload" 1,200 stores in an effort to raise money, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday. A majority stakeholder in Sears Holdings Corp., which operates Sears and Kmart, is hoping to receive $770 million in cash related to the stores.

http://news.yahoo.com/sears-unload-1...-abc-news.html

[noonwitch]

And I'm sure that the IRS didn't. I wonder if you were even on their books.

You got an envelope every Friday with your cash pay, down to the exact penny. There was a witholding statement inside.

[Zeus]

Here is what gets me, they said it was because sales were down 5%, seriously why should 5% be enough for stores to close.
Do these people have every penny they use for inventory, utilities, payroll and buildings a on loan from a bank or something.
Crap if I rolled over because things were down 5% I would have been dead a long time ago.

Are Sears and Kmart Goners?

8/31/2011 @ 2:42PM

For an investment of less than $1 billion, Lampert gained total control of a company that, wounded or not, was doing over $30 billion in yearly sales and throwing off a ton of cash. That he pulled off this maneuver only days after being kidnapped at gunpoint and held for ransom only added to Lampert’s legend. This was a true corporate badass, and if he said Kmart would rise again, who could doubt him?But the view from within the retail industry was a bit different. Watching Lampert build a holding company is far different than seeing a retail chain get the leadership it needs. The new Sears Holdings stock soared for a while, fueled by Lampert’s reputation and the real estate value of its stores. But that’s not enough to revitalize a retailer.

It was a great story, but it was not a retail story. It was a real estate story, perfect for 2005. And then the real estate market crashed.
All of a sudden, the whole strategy began to unravel. With no interest from big-box retailers, the merged entity — now known as Sears Holdings — had to struggle to find its footing as actual businesses. It’s been a disaster. In the six years since the merger, revenue has declined every single year and income has fallen a shocking 84 percent. This year, the company has dropped to tenth place among top retailers for the first time ever. In a recovering retail climate, Sears is the only store in its category to show negative same-store sales — down 4 percent. Kmart has fallen from third in its category to a very distant fourth — even Target ($66 billion) and Costco ($59 billion) have pulled away from Kmart’s sorry $17 billion.

How much longer can Sears Holdings hold on? Kurson thinks the answer is sooner rather than later. He may be right.

I believe that there’s an excellent chance that within a year SHLD will trade for half of what it trades for today. And that will be a good thing for investors like me, who from time to time have shorted the stock. I also believe that within a year, Sears and Kmart will no longer exist as freestanding stores. And that will be a damn shame.

Amen

[Zeus]

The K-Mart in Killeen wasn't bad, and it was right outside the east gate at FT Hood, so it had a good location, but it never seemed to do much business, especially compared to the two WalMarts within five miles of the post.

They converted that K-mart into a Super K to compete with the Super Walmarts in Killeen and Copperas Cove. I haven't been to that k-mart in yrs couldn't tell ya if it's even still there. You can go to either of the Walmarts in the middle of the night and still see quite a few shoppers.