Sears to Close 100-120 Kmart & Sears Stores, Affecting Thousands of Retail Workers

Image via Wikipedia

This morning Sears announced they will be closing 100 to 120 Kmart and Sears stores due to poor sales and lack of competition to rivals like Target & Walmart.  Earlier this year Sears announced they would close 10 stores.  Though all major media outlets continue to only focus on what this means for the stock and shareholders of Sears/Kmart, the closing of stores is expected to lay off or displace over 1,000 Sears/Kmart retail employees.  Our hearts and best wishes go out to those who will be affected by the store closings.

From The Associated Press:

Sears Holdings Corp. plans to close between 100 and 120 Sears and Kmart stores after poor sales during the holidays, the most crucial time of year for retailers.  

The store closings follow its announcement last quarter it would shutter 10 stores. Kmart and Sears have a combined 2,177 U.S. big box locations and another 500 in Canada.
A list of which stores closing will be available at www.searsmedia.com.

Wall Street analysts have long faulted Sears for not investing enough to make its stores appealing. Sears is "effectively asking customers to pay for a poorer shopping environment" than other chains, Credit Suisse analyst Gary Balter said in a note to clients.
Balter was also surprised that Sears would borrow money during the holidays, which are typically a peak cash flow period.

Sears blamed poor consumer electronics sales in a tough economic environment "especially for big-ticket items" for more than half of the decline in its namesake chain's domestic same-store sales. 

Wednesday Morning One Liners...

Image via Wikipedia

Members of United Food and Commercial Workers Locals 1099 and 911 are pursuing a merger to create a new group, UFCW Local 75, which would be one of the five largest UFCW unions in the country, reports said Tuesday.
Read more of this story

Crain's expands on another BJ's coming to Brooklyn.

Another employer stiffing employees on overtime in Manhattan.

A 20-year-old Mohegan Lake man has been awarded nearly $1 million in damages after his left hand was crushed by a freight elevator door at an Eastchester Stop & Shop where he was stocking shelves.

Stop & Shop is planning an 'affordable food summit'

Thin-crust pizza, fat-free caramel swirl ice cream and organic cage-free eggs are some of the more than 80 new Great Value products slated to hit Wal-Mart's shelves this month.
Read more of this story

A rash of competitive openings from non-union operators — particularly Publix — has been sinking sales at Bruno's Supermarkets, Bruno's officials revealed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court here.
Read more of this story

Sears Holdings here last week said it would close another 24 locations — about half of them Kmart stores — by the end of May, following the previously announced closure of 28 locations last year.
Read more of this story

Foxwoods employees are petitioning for a union vote with the UFCW.

Is Wal-Mart lending muscle to fight for Health Care reform?

A UFCW Local strikes in Canada, Target fined for overcharging, Whole Foods Gowanus is a lingering question mark, Thursday One Liners...

Image via Wikipedia

Nearly 800 workers at Loblaw Cos Ltd's 13 Maxi stores in eastern Quebec went on strike on Wednesday over wages and benefits, the union said.

More from Supermarket News

The Brooklyn Paper says Whole Foods needs a partner in the Gowanus project.

Whole Foods stock yesterday hit all time seven-year low.

Sears Holdings will remove grocery departments at four Super Kmart stores and convert them to the nonfood Big Kmart format, a company spokeswoman told SN Wednesday.
Read more of this story

Target stores have agreed to pay a $1.7 million civil penalty for overcharging California customers through electronic cash register scanners that rang up too-high prices, the Sonoma County district attorney's office said Tuesday.

Wal-Mart's new Green sustainability push.

Politics

Newsday writes on the nasty State Senate race between Craig Johnson and Barbara Donno.

Palin's $150,000 wardrobe.