Kmart winding down


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Thread Number: 66456 / Tag: Other Home Products or Autos
Kmart winding down

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Post# 890738 7/24/2016 at 11:15 (2,832 days old) by washman (o)
Checkrate/Likes 6 www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies... Article says it all as do the interviews from the employees. Let's see, 941 stores. When I worked there, we had about 2,600. I'd say 12-14 months before all the merchandise is liquidated. Already at Ollies, a dumping ground of sorts, there is more and more Sears and KM "closeout" merchandise than I've ever seen. 12-14 months might be optimistic if Eddie cannot find some suckers to advance funds to wind down operations. Not sure about Sears though, best option would be to pawn off the Kennmore and Craftsman brand names to some other investment firm and have 3rd party supplies make the goods. I've said it many times in the past and I'll say it again. Want to piss your company down the toilet? Put a beancounter in charge. Kmart will be the latest casualty of such corporate stupidity.

Post# 890803 , Reply# 1 7/24/2016 at 20:36 (2,831 days old) by delaneymeegan (Midwest)
Checkrate/Likes This is the employees opinions. I was surprised to hear that there was stock..... in back. How do you make money on stock not available for sale? Any retailer is in business to Sell stuff, not store it..... or for that matter, to pay ridiculous rental and maintenance fees for those awful malls. Sears is denying the rumors of shut-down. It's true, they could be saying that to stave off a panic response. Time will tell.

Post# 890816 , Reply# 2 7/24/2016 at 23:36 (2,831 days old) by man114 (Buffalo)
Checkrate/Likes Sears negotiated clever leases back in the day or found ways to own that real estate. It's basically ship the merchandise in put in 3 associates for the store and turn the list on for some of these stores and you've got 100k+ square feet of selling space. They don't seem to be having issues getting merchandise into the stores which is the red flag that vendors are backing off or they're short of funds. I go there and there are carts and carts of big ticket stuff, toolsets, grills, lawnmowers, mattresses. I think Eddie sinks the stock price low enough than takes it private.

Post# 890823 , Reply# 3 7/25/2016 at 02:47 (2,831 days old) by tolivac (greenville nc)
Checkrate/Likes Are the buzzards through circling K-Mart and Saers and going to pick the remains?I would be leary if the store has you move warehouse stock to the sales floor and not replenish what you put out.Guess they will go anytime now.Guess will wait to when the "Going Out of Business" signs are hung!

Post# 890844 , Reply# 4 7/25/2016 at 06:37 (2,831 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes 1 *No more* "blue light specials"?? In 1979, I furnished my entire first apartment with items from K-Mart. A 19 inch Admiral color TV for under $200--floor model. Lasted years. A Douglas dinette set, got handed down eventually. Wear Ever cookware with Silverstone, made in the USA, had that for several years also. Corelle dishes with the little green floral trim. Still have a few pieces. A Flexsteel sofa, and inexpensive end tables with fake wood plastic fronts. Had them for years afterward in my basement. Another of my frequent shopping stores as a young bachelor was E.J Korvette. Luckily I became an upwardly mobile adult and able to afford to save for nicer things, but K Mart gave me a good start.

Post# 890846 , Reply# 5 7/25/2016 at 06:58 (2,831 days old) by joeypete (Concord, NH)
Checkrate/Likes I just went to KMart a couple months ago and the store was very outdated. Employees were friendly, though several were bickering with each other...but that happens at my job too! LOL. They had plenty of merchandise though. I grew up with KMart...and Bradlees...and Caldor...and Ames/Zayres. Long before Wally World and Target came into the northeast big time. I'd shop at my KMart more if it was closer to me though. I LOVED the Super K in upstate NY and in Tucson. They were very nice in their day. It's sad to see this happening. :(

Post# 890854 , Reply# 6 7/25/2016 at 08:25 (2,831 days old) by askolover (South of Nash Vegas, TN)
Checkrate/Likes We had Kmart, BigK, TG&Y, Grant's, and Woolco. Nearby Huntsville, AL had a Bargain Town USA and Nashville had Hill's. I remember when the first Walmart came to our area in Pulaski, TN, a small town with unfortunate historical significance.

Post# 890855 , Reply# 7 7/25/2016 at 08:26 (2,831 days old) by DADoES (TX,�U.S. of A.)
Checkrate/Likes � K-Mart here closed YEARS ago, long before Sears got involved.� One of the Rotary Club's community service projects was to help fund remodeling the building into a Civic Center (in 1988).� Only 15 stores in TX now per kmart.com.� None are anywhere near here.� Back in the day was at least 4 stores within an hr drive (including the one here).

Post# 890856 , Reply# 8 7/25/2016 at 08:34 (2,831 days old) by dermacie (my forever home (Glenshaw, PA))
Checkrate/Likes *Kmart* In my suburban Pittsburgh neighborhood of Shaler Township there is an aging Kmart in the Shaler Plaza it opened in 1964 and was the 10th store in the beginning of an empire. It is still a busy store since the closed Wal-mart is many mile from it. I myself shop there very often as I have since I was a child. I know I will miss it when its gone.

Post# 890869 , Reply# 9 7/25/2016 at 10:58 (2,831 days old) by delaneymeegan (Midwest)
Checkrate/Likes Don't count on them going. Remember, Sears/Kmart is still the 5th largest retailer in the U.S.

Post# 890874 , Reply# 10 7/25/2016 at 11:34 (2,831 days old) by vintagekenmore (Spokane, Washington)
Checkrate/Likes I remember when I was little, that Kmart actually sold GE washers and dryers for a long time. Then all if a sudden they were gone

Post# 890875 , Reply# 11 7/25/2016 at 12:02 (2,831 days old) by dermacie (my forever home (Glenshaw, PA))
Checkrate/Likes *Sears* Until 1988 Sears was the number one retailer in the country. Wal-mart surpassed them and it was Wal-mart Sears and Kmart. That's kind of why it was logical for Kmart to buy them nearly a dozen years ago. All of retailers seem to be struggling in today's world with cheaper competition.

Post# 890876 , Reply# 12 7/25/2016 at 12:02 (2,831 days old) by DADoES (TX,�U.S. of A.)
Checkrate/Likes � K-Mart sold GE (or Hotpoint) and Whirlpool. And maybe Frigidaire? (before or after WCI, or both?).

Post# 890879 , Reply# 13 7/25/2016 at 12:31 (2,831 days old) by washman (o)
Checkrate/Likes 5 *Well.......* "Don't count on them going. Remember, Sears/Kmart is still the 5th largest retailer in the U.S" I once said that about General Motors when they had 60% of the passenger car market in the US alone, when they employed 750,000 people, made a full line of appliances, Detroit Diesel was a mainstay in the trucking world, when you started in a Chevy and they buried you in a Cadillac hearse. If you told me 40 years ago, even 30 years ago, that 2 of the existing car lines, Olds and Pontiac would be gone, I'd would have said you're crazy. Hard to fathom today, but once upon a time, Pontiac vied for 3rd place in the annual car sales after Ford and Chevy esp in the 60's. If tyou told me Ford would give Mercury the boot, I'd say no way. If you told me the once perennial 3rd best seller, Plymouth, would be gone, I'd say you would have been nuts. Fact is, there really isn't much left for Kmart/Sears in terms of market share. Walmart owns the down-and-dirty-cheap end, Target established itself more upscale, and Dollah General fills in the gaps along with Family Dollah. There simply isn't enough gas in the "brand" tank for Kmart/Sears to revive. It's only a matter of time before they slip into oblivion.

Post# 890883 , Reply# 14 7/25/2016 at 13:14 (2,830 days old) by Tomturbomatic (Beltsville, MD)
Checkrate/Likes I remember seeing WP products at a Kmart in the mid 70s. What they are talking about is that "just in time stocking" with stock going directly onto the shelves. Auto and appliance companies use it for parts. It is a way to avoid having to pay taxes on inventory. All you have is what's on the shelves or in the case of parts, what you order in for a customer and sell today or tomorrow. I think the internet is radically changing the way American shops. Amazon is becoming a big player in the grocery delivery business, but it costs $299 to upgrade to Amazon Prime Fresh or whatever it's called; pretty clever getting your customers to capitalize your business expansion. I wonder if it is "winding down" or circling the drain?

Post# 890889 , Reply# 15 7/25/2016 at 13:51 (2,830 days old) by GusHerb (Chicago/NWI)
Checkrate/Likes I went to Kmart a month ago maybe. It was stocked and full of shoppers but the prices for commodity items were way higher than other stores. A 100oz bottle of original Tide was $15. I don't think the store has ever been remodeled since it opened in the early 90s either. It used to be a Venture before that which opened in 1975. The only thing they have done is remodel the bathrooms.

Post# 890998 , Reply# 16 7/26/2016 at 01:48 (2,830 days old) by tolivac (greenville nc)
Checkrate/Likes The closed KMart in Greenville is SLOOOOWWWLLLY being turned into a Publix Market.Remember these when I was a kid living in Florida.Nice stores.The sign posted on the derelict KMart says "Publix 2017"!The little shopping center where the KMart was is looking like a desert-3 restuarants there have closed-the fabric store--gone-other stores-empty-signs in the windows-"This space for rent!"The state motor vehicle place occupys what used to be a state liquor store.The motor vehicle place had to move-the shopping plaza they were in got bulldozed-in its place---A Hobby Lobby!See how this does.

Post# 891006 , Reply# 17 7/26/2016 at 03:13 (2,830 days old) by delaneymeegan (Midwest)
Checkrate/Likes 1 While it's true that Kmart, and GM, may have once been "Tops" in their field, it doesn't mean that when they are no longer tops that an entity/person/brand needs to slide to the opposite extreme. I think, people assume that's what HAS to happen. There are still 900 Kmart stores. That's a shit-load of stores that any retailer could be proud of. One thing is clear, there is no quick moves to sell off or close things down. All we can do is speculate. I won't be surprised either way. I'm biased to rooting for Kmart and Kenmore. Sears really doesn't do much for me, but..... Retailing has changed considerably, and for the better, I think. More efficient, less waste. Walmart is next. They aren't exactly sailing along any longer. CLICK HERE TO GO TO delaneymeegan's LINK

Post# 891034 , Reply# 18 7/26/2016 at 06:57 (2,830 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *K Mart carried also* Zenith, RCA, Panasonic, Soundesign, Loyyd's, Hoover, Eureka, etc. I think even some Sony, and G.E.

Post# 891245 , Reply# 19 7/27/2016 at 11:21 (2,829 days old) by washman (o)
Checkrate/Likes 1 *941 stores may be "impressive"* but 2,600 are a helluva lot more impressive. It's a matter of time; there really were so-called "synergies" when Kmart gobbled up sears other than boosting the price of the stock. The store's (yes even the one in my town) are old, decrepit, staffed by shellshocked zombies that gave up a long time ago, empty shelves, 1 perhaps 2 check out lines open. yep, I'm going to spend my hard earned money and scarce time in there. I think NOT! Emptying the stockroom as part of P2P is a crock of bullshit at best. I find it amazing the corporate flack hired even said it as such. Even worse is he expects us to believe it. My old store in Bloomington was BUSY! The garden shop alone was a license to print money yet it was closed. The auto center always had customers. We sold ammo and hunting licenses like no tomorrow. I'd say 700-800 stores will remain by year end. Come 2017 keep your ears tuned in for another "announcement" from Eddie himself for another turn around plan, another line of credit secured from some hapless bank, more cutbacks, more closings. Eddie does not seem to get that you cannot "cut" your way to profitability. You have to have customers to sustain ANY business model yet that basic fact seems to elude him. If SHLD has yet another crappy holiday season, the end might even come sooner. Right now, imported crap from China should be just about into all the stores in preparation for the upcoming holiday season. Sad thing is, the more that Kmart requires in terms of investment the less they seem to put into the business. That is a recipe for disaster and ultimately, shutdown.

Post# 891246 , Reply# 20 7/27/2016 at 11:47 (2,829 days old) by Tomturbomatic (Beltsville, MD)
Checkrate/Likes *Sears Denies Plan To Close Kmart,* but does plan more store closures according to the article on MSN. It might not be worth a bit of a byte, but people are talking about Kmart closing. CLICK HERE TO GO TO Tomturbomatic's LINK

Post# 891253 , Reply# 21 7/27/2016 at 13:12 (2,828 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *"Damage" control* Of course they are not going to admit if K Mart is going. They don't want a dump on the stock. My company told us for a year we weren't closing when they knew. One manager got into the portal restricted to executives and found out. Of course he was terminated, but he had a head start on his job hunt many others wish they'd had, because by summer of '07, there were no jobs to be had.

Post# 891268 , Reply# 22 7/27/2016 at 14:17 (2,828 days old) by washman (o)
Checkrate/Likes 3 *My definition of wow* "We're focused on giving our members a 'WOW' experience and this change is helping our stores operate more efficiently" ...........is WOW, you're still OPEN? :)

Post# 891340 , Reply# 23 7/28/2016 at 00:54 (2,828 days old) by alr2903 (TN)
Checkrate/Likes *If it is true...* I hope they do not string the employees along till the Holiday season. Seems like there is always word of a closure or layoff at the end of year. A one two punch. "Happy Holiday's, you are fired". Another ultimate and cruel party foul.

Post# 891359 , Reply# 24 7/28/2016 at 06:04 (2,828 days old) by joeypete (Concord, NH)
Checkrate/Likes 1 Unfortunately KMart really doesn't have an identity anymore, or something unique about it that draws customers in. They really float in between WalMart and Target. It's sad that they haven't been able to stand out so to speak and thrive. They seem to be doing better in areas where the competition is less. In NH for example, WalMart is everywhere...kind of like KMart used to be, but Target is not. So the few K's that we have are not necessarily near both stores. Really they should have focused on this years ago...even opening new stores in more rural areas where maybe customers don't have any stores of this nature. But from what I can tell they are pretty much just focused on surviving at this point, without any real direction.

Post# 891374 , Reply# 25 7/28/2016 at 08:45 (2,828 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *True Joey.* I still shop at Target, although have to watch for low quality. I bought some 800 thread count Egyptian cotton sheets that only lasted a year. Made in India. Next I bought ones made in Indonesia, and they have lasted two years already. I never go to K Mart anymore, or Walmart. The nearest K Mart is seven miles away, Walmart two miles, and they have little I want. Target is a half mile, and a one stop Meijer Michigan based chain for gas, groceries, and hardline is one mile. Saving time, and fuel is also saving money. Kroger has expanded into hardline in their new larger stores.

Post# 893772 , Reply# 26 8/13/2016 at 15:03 (2,811 days old) by defoedude (Ferguson, MO)
Checkrate/Likes *Tales from a former Blue Light employee* Any of the non teenager people on the sales floor, give them some slack. We are running around with our heads cut off trying to take care of our floor customers, answer calls, unload trucks, get our freight out to the floor, do a layaway or gofer shift, cover someone's lunch or break, and be a backup cashier, all while not having a raise since 2010 and no 401k match since 2008. I still keep in touch with many of my coworkers at the South County and Florissant stores and Mary who was my mentor at SoCo and has been with the Blue Light for 45 years is just ready for them to announce closing - why drag us along for another year?!! As far as the store count in St. Louis, as of this week there are now only 4 left on the MO side since Bridgeton just closed on Sunday, Marketplace is next to go since Balke Brown Transwestern is advertising their space as "available soon," and my last store 4304 in Florissant is still safe for the time being - after Dunn Rd closed 2 years ago we got their traffic and sales but Eddie sold the store to the Seritage deal so now 4304 is paying rent and Walmart just opened up a new store literally a 10 minute walk down Lindbergh - we shall see what happens...

Post# 893776 , Reply# 27 8/13/2016 at 15:22 (2,811 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *Agreed,* A successful store is all on the help on the floor if the manager has empowered them to care and do a good job. I used to keep a sign in my back room hung from a cooling fan housing; "If there is dust on this fan unit, we have a dirty store." Now I never expected my staff to be perfect, only to take an extra five minutes now and then to clean. Once corporate swung the axe, it was out of my hands.

Post# 893803 , Reply# 28 8/13/2016 at 20:36 (2,811 days old) by joeypete (Concord, NH)
Checkrate/Likes I went to my local KMart last Saturday and I have to say it was not a bad experience AT ALL. Granted the store is old but the shelves were packed with items, it was well stocked. They had everything. The employees were very friendly...especially the cashiers. Very professional. I used $12 in Shop-Your-Way Points and earned another $11...I was very happy. Later that evening I got t-boned and my car was totaled, so the rest of the day didn't go too well. LOL. But my car looked great with new windshield wipers from KMart! hahahahaha

Post# 893824 , Reply# 29 8/13/2016 at 23:41 (2,811 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *Too bad about* your car, and glad you're OK! Joeypete, A T Bone crash is bad, and not sustaining an injury is miraculous. Was it in the Chrysler? The 200 is all done soon.

Post# 893853 , Reply# 30 8/14/2016 at 07:19 (2,811 days old) by joeypete (Concord, NH)
Checkrate/Likes Thanks...yes it was in the 200. I bought it new in 2012...94K miles as of the accident and not a single repair...for anything! It will be missed. I bought a 2016 Buick Regal Turbo with AWD...it's a nice replacement...beautiful car. I did get injured, I'm out of work a couple weeks but at least nothing terribly serious. Just some bruises and head trauma. I'll be ok :)

Post# 896135 , Reply# 31 8/29/2016 at 08:28 (2,796 days old) by washman (o)
Checkrate/Likes *They're down to 276 million in cash and cash* equivalents. That's like having 4 dollars in your savings account. If Sears Holdings has another lousy holiday season this year, watch in 2017 for the beginnings of a close down. CLICK HERE TO GO TO washman's LINK

Post# 896138 , Reply# 32 8/29/2016 at 09:09 (2,796 days old) by A440 ()
Checkrate/Likes Kmart had items that no other retailer would carry in the Atlanta area. For years, Kmart was the only place I could find Dynamo detergent. Sadly, we no longer have Kmart stores in the Greater Atlanta area. The closest store to me is in Peachtree City and Covington, Ga. I have shopped on Kmart's website. I have to say that they have had the best prices on Electronics that I have purchased. When I bought the items the shipping was free if the total price was over $50. Don't know if they still offer the shipping discount.

Post# 896140 , Reply# 33 8/29/2016 at 09:16 (2,796 days old) by A440 ()
Checkrate/Likes Just checked the Kmart website. Free Shipping on total of $35! Not bad at all. They also do online "Layaway".

Post# 896152 , Reply# 34 8/29/2016 at 10:55 (2,796 days old) by washerboy (Little Rock Arkansas)
Checkrate/Likes At one time we had 3 K-Mart stores in the Little Rock area, we now have 1 and it's in a part of town that only those folks that live close by go would have reason to shop there. I did run though one in Nashville Tn about a year ago, only because it was across the street from a hotel I was staying at. It was quite a bit more expensive than Wal Mart, Target and Kroger. I really don't see the word "discount store" applying to K-Mart. When I was growing up my mother shopped K-Mart often, In fact I remember our first color TV came from KM.My favoriate memory of KM was they sold freash carmel popcorn...my mother would always buy me a bag..small size of course..ha!

Post# 896155 , Reply# 35 8/29/2016 at 11:29 (2,796 days old) by johnb300m (Chicago)
Checkrate/Likes 2 omg joey, see what kmart did to you! LOL ;) I've been following this S/K news for a while now, and it just seems like that scumbag Lampert wants to liquidate the company so he can sell off all the assets for himself, and then have all that majestic real estate to sell/lease off. He's gonna make BANK of the carcasses of these once great stores. :'( #corporateraiders

Post# 896234 , Reply# 36 8/29/2016 at 16:16 (2,795 days old) by classiccaprice (Hampton, Virginia)
Checkrate/Likes 1 Our oldest local one just closed. I rescued the lumber yard sign out of the back of the store. I think it's from 1974 when the store opened. They had a garden shop too for a long time, but it went to the dumpster before I could get it. :( It's going to hang in my garage. View Full Size

Post# 896354 , Reply# 37 8/30/2016 at 02:41 (2,795 days old) by tolivac (greenville nc)
Checkrate/Likes The former KMart building in my area---GONE!!!Demolished to make way for the Publix grocery store to open beginning of 2017.Breifly watched the demo excavator clawing away at the place before I had to move on as the traffic light changed.

Post# 896366 , Reply# 38 8/30/2016 at 07:31 (2,795 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *K Mart headquarters* in Troy Michigan still stands empty.

Post# 896523 , Reply# 39 8/31/2016 at 05:08 (2,794 days old) by tolivac (greenville nc)
Checkrate/Likes Any future planes for the KMart Troy headquarters?

Post# 896534 , Reply# 40 8/31/2016 at 06:57 (2,794 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *Ther are rumors,* but no definite plans by the owner Forbes Co. based in Southfield Mi. as yet. They also own the nearby upscale Somerset mall. The site is 1.1 million sq. feet on 40 acres. The current buildings are unique, with squares connected by narrow corridors.

Post# 896536 , Reply# 41 8/31/2016 at 07:46 (2,794 days old) by Tomturbomatic (Beltsville, MD)
Checkrate/Likes I think that "Withering on the vine" is a more apt term than "winding down," for Kmart. It is the retail analogy to citrus greening, the blight that is killing off the orange groves in Florida. Publix is sure expanding. They moved up to Georgia quite some time ago. When I was a kid, we only encountered them in Florida, where wonder of wonders, grocery stores were open on Sundays and even giant places like Webb's City. I still remember walking through the "undersea mermaid attraction" with Daddy and my brother. A camera allowed a woman to see who was in line and she would single out people like "that good looking daddy with the two cute little boys," when we walked through. CLICK HERE TO GO TO Tomturbomatic's LINK

Post# 896572 , Reply# 42 8/31/2016 at 11:19 (2,794 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *Yes,* Publix is great. They will give Kroger good competition in Georgia. Sunday shopping also began up here in 1965. Gone are the old blue laws. As moms ventured out of the home to work, they needed more shopping hours available I guess. By 1975, if not sooner, full time union supermarket hourly staff were earning double time on Sundays. Those jobs became middle class, but are no more. Bought nice homes, cars, cottages, sent mom or dad, and kids to college too. Today, if they get time plus 1/2 on Sunday, they are lucky.

Post# 898212 , Reply# 43 9/11/2016 at 06:58 (2,783 days old) by washman (o)
Checkrate/Likes *What other shoppers say* www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies...

Post# 898276 , Reply# 44 9/11/2016 at 17:58 (2,782 days old) by LordKenmore (The Laundry Room)
Checkrate/Likes I wonder if/when KMart goes out of business if there won't be lots of comments along the lines of: "KMart Came Apart." ("Came Apart" was one crack I heard about KMart quality with, IIRC, clothes in the early 80s.)

Post# 898279 , Reply# 45 9/11/2016 at 18:40 (2,782 days old) by washman (o)
Checkrate/Likes Attention Kmart shoppers.......................

Post# 898337 , Reply# 46 9/12/2016 at 00:46 (2,782 days old) by tolivac (greenville nc)
Checkrate/Likes First--Get rid of the "Shop Your Way" program and Eddie Lampert.Or--just end the torture for customers and store employees by pulling the plug and closing the stores.The pictures of the abandoned scenes-and the still packaged gas grills on the pallet-and the pallet sitting on a FILTHY floor!Lets just end at already--!!!I haven't visited the Sears store here in Greenville in several years-the last time I did-just as the article says-no floor staff-or if they are there they just ignore you-dirty store conditions-guess they cut the janitor staff,depressing-outdated stores.Oh yes-when I did visit-asked them to demo a vacuum for me in their sew-vac dept--they couldn't find an outlet that worked-they had to run an extension cord to another dept!!!

Post# 898352 , Reply# 47 9/12/2016 at 06:38 (2,782 days old) by Tomturbomatic (Beltsville, MD)
Checkrate/Likes Back in the late 90s or early 2000s, I went to the Sears store at White Oak shopping center in technically what was Silver Spring, MD, I think. I went to the Hardware Department in the late afternoon where there was a long line at the register and only one man, clearly over 60 years old, manning the thing. Finally. he looked up at the crowd and apologized, but said that he had to go to the bathroom and that he had not had a break all afternoon. He locked the register and hurried to the bathroom. No one complained. He returned shortly and thanked everyone for their patience. I think that was the last time I went to that store. It seemed more like a sweat shop.

Post# 898355 , Reply# 48 9/12/2016 at 07:12 (2,782 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *Sears began* stiffing their store employees around 1980. They cut profit sharing, benefits, and then commission. I knew a lady who managed a credit dept. and made $150 per week net. in 1978. Her husband left her for a mistress when she was a late middle ager, so she had to get a job. She struggled with bills and a broken heart until she died of a heart attack before age 60. Her kids did care, and helped as much as they could. They were also raising their own kids.

Post# 898357 , Reply# 49 9/12/2016 at 07:24 (2,782 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes 1 *I also knew* a nice lady who worked in the customer service dept. at K Mart. She didn't make very good money, but it was helping with her husbands income. Those were high inflation years. I had also recently entered the retail business, but in food. She told me, as well as my grandmother, and an aunt, to keep my job. That hard times were coming. Well they did by 1981. I still had a job, unlike many my age who left this state even back then. I worked very hard, and my contemporaries told me so, and that those who do keep their jobs. I worked my way up the ladder, and was never on unemployment until mid 2007. I never earned as much again. It's not only Sears holdings, it happened to many people in many fields. Is it corporate greed? I don't know. I think part of it our ages, part of it is circumstance of our fields of occupations. Computer IT, medical jobs for those educated to do them are plentifull, if you are still young especially. Retail is a has been, unless you have an online business. Opening your own high volume brick and mortar store at my age is suicide. Not only the stress, but the competition is fierce.

Post# 898358 , Reply# 50 9/12/2016 at 08:06 (2,782 days old) by joeypete (Concord, NH)
Checkrate/Likes I went to K Mart again and didn't get t-boned this time. They still have my support! hahahaha

Post# 898405 , Reply# 51 9/12/2016 at 15:34 (2,781 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *The K Mart* near us closed years ago. The nearest is seven miles away. Lost of stop lights.

Post# 898540 , Reply# 52 9/13/2016 at 08:16 (2,781 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *Online shopping,* expensive mall rents, and tough competition from Boscov's, Walmart, and other newer to the market retailers have all contributed to Sears and K Mart's decline. A mall anchor store covers much of the malls upkeep costs regardless of it's bottom line.

Post# 898570 , Reply# 53 9/13/2016 at 11:12 (2,781 days old) by washman (o)
Checkrate/Likes Sean Williams: I would be jaw-on-the-floor shocked if Sears Holdings made it to 2020 based on its ongoing business woes and dismal balance sheet. Despite a veritable laundry list of store closures -- the company announced more than six dozen in April alone � and a renewed focus on modernizing its most profitable stores, Sears and Kmart simply can't gain any traction. During the second quarter, the company announced that Kmart's same-store sales declined 3.3%, while Sears' domestic store revenue dropped 7% from the prior-year period. Perhaps more telling is that this continues an 11-year trend of declining same-store sales for the Sears-Kmart combination. Since 2010 alone, the company has lost more than $8 billion. With clear business-model issues also come financing concerns. Sears Holdings wound up tapping a $300 million secured junior lien against its inventory, receivables, and other working capital from ESL Investments, a hedge fund founded and run by Eddie Lampert, who is also CEO of Sears. ESL has also previously backed a $250 million debt tranche for Sears Holdings. Since the beginning of the year, Sears Holdings' long-term debt obligations have ballooned from $2.2 billion to $3.4 billion, while its cash on hand has jumped by just $38 million to $276 million. In other words, Sears' weak balance sheet could thwart its only chance to renew the image of its most profitable stores. Perhaps the only path to recovery for Sears Holdings is to consider selling its core brands, such as Craftsman, Kenmore, and Die Hard. Doing so would likely bring a major relief to Sears' balance sheet, which could allow the company the opportunity to completely modernize its stores. Unfortunately, it could also remove a big incentive for the few loyal Sears customers that remain to return to those stores, and really crush any opportunity for near-term growth. Sears Holdings and Eddie Lampert have a number of tough decisions ahead of them, but my suspicion is the company may not live to see the turn of the decade.

Post# 898689 , Reply# 54 9/14/2016 at 06:10 (2,780 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *Yes, and* I doubt Lampert is very worried. He'll retire with a nice golden parachute. These guys never concern them selves with the store employees, or even the district managers who may have a difficult time finding new jobs, if they even can.

Post# 899325 , Reply# 55 9/18/2016 at 20:12 (2,775 days old) by man114 (Buffalo)
Checkrate/Likes Fast Eddie keeps finding ways to get them money. Even if it's his own. If the stores aren't doing well why does he keep trying to sustain them? Does he think he'll stumble across some magic formula that makes them return to profitability? Seems like they're trying different things. They've added massive mattress departments again to some of our local stores which they used to have years ago. They put the electronics dept. back to doubling up the TVs this was always better to side by side compare the TVs instead of when they were haphazardly all over the place. They brought back bicycles. They added a small section of table games like air hockey and pool and kept it as opposed to how it was seasonal for a long time. I have noticed suppliers haven't really lost confidence and they're still shipping them product. This is usually a death knell when the suppliers stop shipping. I wonder if in some ways they're afraid they'd lose that much square footage and it would hurt their sales as well. Every time I go there it's like they're always getting merchandise in. Someone has to be buying something.

Post# 899379 , Reply# 56 9/19/2016 at 07:20 (2,775 days old) by joeypete (Concord, NH)
Checkrate/Likes My store was stocked really well too and there were actually quite a few people shopping in there. That's good to see. As much as I love Target...on the weekends its a zoo...EVERYONE goes there. I won't step foot in WalMart unless I have no choice. It's still nice to have another option, like K Mart. I just wish mine was closer to me.

Post# 899381 , Reply# 57 9/19/2016 at 07:26 (2,775 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *Koh's was* also very busy. If Eddie is using his own money, I have no criticisam then.

Post# 899441 , Reply# 58 9/19/2016 at 12:31 (2,775 days old) by Iheartmaytag (Wichita, Kansas)
Checkrate/Likes *Just in the news* Sear's holding is closing 64 stores, mostly K-Marts, Liquidation will begin 9-22, should have stores closed down by January. Citing K-Mart does not have enough cash, or access to cash to continue operating. . CLICK HERE TO GO TO Iheartmaytag's LINK

Post# 899456 , Reply# 59 9/19/2016 at 14:10 (2,774 days old) by washman (o)
Checkrate/Likes *2017 will be an interesting year* if Kmart has a lousy holiday season, which it very well might, the end could come as soon as next year.

Post# 899457 , Reply# 60 9/19/2016 at 14:23 (2,774 days old) by kd12 (Arkansas)
Checkrate/Likes *Defoedude's Description* of the chaos in K-mart stores reminds me of what I have seen going on in Target the past few years. Too many retailers are trying to do the most with the least number of folks. It's called a race to the bottom.

Post# 899535 , Reply# 61 9/19/2016 at 21:33 (2,774 days old) by askolover (South of Nash Vegas, TN)
Checkrate/Likes *Closing more here in TN* From a news station in Nashville CLICK HERE TO GO TO askolover's LINK

Post# 899545 , Reply# 62 9/19/2016 at 22:11 (2,774 days old) by man114 (Buffalo)
Checkrate/Likes One is closing here, probably has high shrink as a Wal-Mart that was nearby also had incredibly high shrink. Store is well stocked but kind of like a sleazy low rent Sears. Except there is a nice Sears in a giant well traveled mall that is literally directly across the street. Unless you need grocery or pharmacy they sell the exact same stuff. Employees there are pretty incompetent. They had the garden center closed and locked when I wanted to see if they had any outdoor patio lighting left.

Post# 900375 , Reply# 63 9/24/2016 at 21:18 (2,769 days old) by cornutt (Huntsville, AL USA)
Checkrate/Likes Interesting bit... A mall where I live, built in 1985, has deteriorated substantially and is about to close. It has been sold (at pennies on the dollar) to an investment group that wants to tear it down and put in a condo development. However, one of the few remaining tenants is Sears... and as it turns out, they actually own the part of the mall that they are in. And they want to stay. The investment group is trying to figure out what to do.

Post# 900402 , Reply# 64 9/25/2016 at 06:22 (2,769 days old) by man114 (Buffalo)
Checkrate/Likes I think that's a tactic they use to force a buyout. They will probably end up selling it for far more than that store is worth in its current state. It's a good tactic to drum up cash. There was another in a similar position I saw on the news recently, basically they forced a buyout. They're fairly strategic when it comes to liquidating these stores. Unlike a lot of these going out of business sales they also ship basically all good merchandise out of the store to another location, then sell off displays and ship in scratch and dent Sears outlet junk or seasonal overstock that didn't sell from other locations. This obviously is some agreed upon arrangement for the liquidation company. Or they're just paying the liquidation company to run the sale as opposed to selling them the merchandise. At the Kmart here they literally packed up all but the display electronics and appliances and sent them to the Sears across the street.

Post# 900454 , Reply# 65 9/25/2016 at 15:34 (2,768 days old) by Dustin92 (Jackson, MI)
Checkrate/Likes One of the two we have in town is set to close in December, was just announced this week and clearances started yesterday. Happened to drive by yesterday and saw the place busier than I've ever seen it in 5 years! The place was always dead... and the last time I was in, it looked like they'd already closed.. in the winter it was cold, couldn't have been over 60 degrees and half the lights were off. Employees were wearing coats in the store. I've been told their air conditioning system has been broken for 3 years. I give the other store a year at best, it's equally deserted and run down.

Post# 900474 , Reply# 66 9/25/2016 at 19:57 (2,768 days old) by joeekaitis (Rialto, California, USA)
Checkrate/Likes Saw sign twirlers advertising Fontana, CA location going out of business sale on the way to Sunday dinner after church today.

Post# 900490 , Reply# 67 9/25/2016 at 23:44 (2,768 days old) by GusHerb (Chicago/NWI)
Checkrate/Likes One of the last remaining stores by me is closing down. The Kmarts around here do pretty well, including the one closing.

Post# 900509 , Reply# 68 9/26/2016 at 07:42 (2,768 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *I'm sure* some will say, what do you expect? Kressge-K Mart started in Detroit. Proof that organized labor was not the only cause for company closures and outsourcings. K Mart was never unionized. However, many who patronized K Mart and Sears had very well paying union benefit jobs which contributed to their success before the middle class began to suffer. Seems in some retrospect, we reap what we sew. General Motors unemployed at least 30 percent of it's buyers by over outsourcing last decade. Trickle down job losses from suppliers also. Ironic though, high level managers were able to retire, and didn't end up unemployed. It all rolls down hill.

Post# 900514 , Reply# 69 9/26/2016 at 08:39 (2,768 days old) by Iheartmaytag (Wichita, Kansas)
Checkrate/Likes *managers were able to retire, and didn't end up unemploy* I know you said High level, so I am assuming you mean at the corporate level. However, at the store level, this is not true. My brother had been a K-Mart manager since 1977. He was left high & dry in the middle of the desert (Hays Kansas). When K-Mart filed for bankruptcy in 2005 the value of all their stock shares that they were given as deferred compensation went to zero. When Sear's merged they became a new cooperation and none of the past remained. Sear's used to be the big appliance retailer. They had the newest designs with the most features. Then they broke up their long standing relationship with Whirlpool, and began to play taps over the intercom. K-Mart and Sear's used to be #1 and #2 retailers. They just switched back and forth. Both of the former competitors failed to evolve, and it appears will soon become extinct.

Post# 900526 , Reply# 70 9/26/2016 at 10:37 (2,768 days old) by washman (o)
Checkrate/Likes 2 *It all started coming off the rails in 1972* That was the year Harry Cunningham retired. Bob Dewar (beancounter) ran things until 1979. Then Bernie Faber (sp) ran things until 1986-87. Joltin Joe Antonni took over and had all sorts of fantastic ideas(!) It is my opinion that Joe was the nail in Kmarts coffin. Bobby Dewar came to the brilliant conclusion that Kmart could not longer put in 80-90,000 SQ foot stores and decided that a smaller footprint would work in smaller towns. Thus we started seeing about 1,000 smaller "group 9" stores popping up. This lead to confusion for layouts, planograms, and merchandise as the smaller 35-55,000 stores could not hold the same amount of product as the larger ones. Bernie ran things in the 80's and was content to maintain staus quo. By now the stores were getting really long in tooth and Kmart made a half hearted attempt at automating HQ systems with RDC and ultimately POS systems at stores. In 1987 seeing how far they were behind walmart and Target, Kmart pushed the IT budget into overdrive and bought 25 per cent of IBM's output in POS systems that year. Obviously, the expenditure put a stain on profits and the dividend for shareholders and Kmart mgmt was loathe to cut the dividend to free up cash to invest in the already outdated stores. Joltin Joe announced a 2.5 billion store improvement plan, then upped it to 3.5 billion (all on borrowed money)then decided that Kmart needed to diversify. Along comes the purchase of Builders Square, Sports Authority, and Waldenbooks all of which drained financial resources and management attention. Meanwhile, hundreds of miles Southwest of Troy, Mr. Sam was almost singularly focused on Walmart and little else. As a result Walmrt honed and refined itself to be a major player in the world of discount retailing whereas Kmart seemed to be interested in anything but. That my friends was the beginning of the end. In 1994 Joltin Joe was pushed out by the board after he dragged his feet on selling off Kmart's purchases, ostensibly to free up cash to invest in the stores. Floyd Hall came aboard and righted the ship........sort of. While Kmart avoided a Ch 11 filing in 1995, incredulously Joltin Joe, when interviewed by a Detroit TV station stated, "Kmart is fine" Floyd thought that kmart needed a "pantry' that is a small grocery section to attract shoppers who, in theory, would stick around and buy higher margin merchandise. It never panned out. Meanwhile the stores were not getting the care and love they needed. Floyd bowed out and Kmart foolishly hired Chuck Conaway, the frat boy who proceed to dig the gravesite that Kmart currently resides in. By now, Kmart simply could not match Walmart on pricing yet Chuck went full speed ahead and did just that. While it revived sales somewhat, it was murder on profits. Chucky and his ilk still managed big bonuses during this time and after some corporate handky panky where he was found to have cooked the books, Chuck was forced out. And how we have a hedge fund manager, Eddie, who simply does not know his ass from his elbow, running what is left of Kmart/Sears into the ground.

Post# 900528 , Reply# 71 9/26/2016 at 11:11 (2,768 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *Yes,* I meant high level as in at the corporate level. I also doubt anyone has used their own money to keep K Mart afloat, because that would use up a lot of their own retirement capital. Some say it all had to go this way. Seriously? That sounds like a cop out. You get out what you put in. Put in garbage, that's what you get back. When you run a business, you don't tell an unhappy customer too bad, thats the way I do it. They tell ten people, who tell ten more, and so on. Soon they are all with the competition. You don't have to give the store away to please people either, nor should you. Honor the uniform commercial codes. There will be those who try to take advantage of price matching, refund, or return policies. The best you can do is meet them half way. If they still walk away unpleased, you did your best. I'd like to see any of these high level financial types who have never managed stores at the hands on level do it for a month. I bet most of them couldn't. They ask for projections and payroll needs, then expect you to perform on a shoe string at there lower today than in the past labor costs. The employees get little or no benefits. Why should they care? They are in school and will move on. They have no stake in success of the stores.

Post# 900532 , Reply# 72 9/26/2016 at 11:41 (2,768 days old) by dermacie (my forever home (Glenshaw, PA))
Checkrate/Likes *Mr Sam* I feel that Walmart has done nothing but use Kmart as a model for his business since the beginning. Lets look at the business that Kmart has owned or started and some of which Walton has bought to either make his own or continue a business that he started, like Sam's club.

Post# 900624 , Reply# 73 9/27/2016 at 07:46 (2,767 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *Yes Eric,* I agree. Oh, I found the Hines Kerry house on Google aerial view map. It has huge solar panels.

Post# 900646 , Reply# 74 9/27/2016 at 10:24 (2,767 days old) by dermacie (my forever home (Glenshaw, PA))
Checkrate/Likes *really* it is heavily guarded and far from the road. Very Interesting. The kmart is close by to there estate too ironically.

Post# 900695 , Reply# 75 9/27/2016 at 19:26 (2,766 days old) by kevin313 (Detroit, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *Was at K-Mart #1 tonight* I had to pick up a few things after work this evening and decided to go to my local K-Mart. This is the same K-Mart that I shopped at as a child and it is the closest one to my home - about three miles west in Garden City, Michigan. It also has a great legacy here in the Detroit area as it was the first K-Mart store that was ever opened - opening its doors on March 1, 1962. This was a big deal for many of us who were regular S.S. Kresge shoppers. So tonight I spent a little time shopping in that same K-Mart store - honestly, it still smells the same every time I walk in there, which isn't often anymore. They were having a sidewalk sale! Getting rid of summer clothes and some other past seasonal items. While the store was fairly well stocked, there is never more than two cashiers open and the lines are slow, slow, slow. I'm sure the store will close one of these days, and with it a real important piece of American retail history. Photos of the store this evening and on opening day in 1962. Photos... < > Photo 1 of 3 View Full Size

Post# 900697 , Reply# 76 9/27/2016 at 19:36 (2,766 days old) by imperial70 (MA USA)
Checkrate/Likes This makes me very sad. Very sad.

Post# 900765 , Reply# 77 9/28/2016 at 07:12 (2,766 days old) by warmsecondrinse (Fort Lee, NJ)
Checkrate/Likes Never more than two cashiers? See ya! Am I the only person who sees red when only half the registers are manned and lnes are out the door? Jim

Post# 900770 , Reply# 78 9/28/2016 at 07:47 (2,766 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *Seems* they were having a sidewalk sale at the Garden City K-Mart last night. No guarding it either. Not in the budget, then again, the Secretary of State wasn't there. LoL I notice most stores have but a few check outs open at the slower end of the month before people get paid. This even includes Walmart on the few occasions I ever visited one, which was usually to do a shopper traffic observation, and price comparisons. Ironically, when I shop at a Nino Salvaggio gourmet market here, it is thriving and busy, almost next door to a big newer Walmart. Good to see!

Post# 900779 , Reply# 79 9/28/2016 at 08:02 (2,766 days old) by dermacie (my forever home (Glenshaw, PA))
Checkrate/Likes *me too* Kmart has always held fond memories for me along with Hills, Ames, GeeBees, Murphy's. and others I hate Walmart and Target and make most non kmart purchases online.

Post# 900788 , Reply# 80 9/28/2016 at 08:30 (2,766 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *My Grandma* use to shop at Hill's in Calcutta Ohio. She lived just over the state line. That was my Moms Mom. My other Grandma lived in Plum Pa. until 1965. We used to go to this huge place that sold appliances, furniture, even toys called Kelly & Cohen.

Post# 900790 , Reply# 81 9/28/2016 at 08:33 (2,766 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *When we'd* vist Grandma when I was a pre teen, I used to go to the G.C. Murphy and buy model car kits so I'd have something to do, other than sit and listen to the Cruicible steel mill's blast furnace all day long.

Post# 900815 , Reply# 82 9/28/2016 at 10:36 (2,766 days old) by washman (o)
Checkrate/Likes Attention kmart shoppers..........................................

Post# 900818 , Reply# 83 9/28/2016 at 10:57 (2,766 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *"Blue Ligth Special"* "everything must go"???? Free Lay Away until the last day of business in the K Mart tradition. All sales final.

Post# 900845 , Reply# 84 9/28/2016 at 13:38 (2,765 days old) by twintubdexter (Palm Springs)
Checkrate/Likes *slightly off topic...don't have a hussy fit* From a report I was reading this morning... "Sears' decline is threatening to kill off at least 200 shopping malls. The retailer has closed 22% of it's stores in the last decade, and it's expected to shutter even more locations as it struggles to stay afloat following years of declining sales, Credit Suisse analysts wrote in a recent profile report. When anchor stores like Sears shut down, shopping malls tend to suffer financially and eventually shut down. That's because malls must find a replacement tenant for the massive retail space that the anchor store occupied. which is nearly impossible...especially in malls that are already financially strapped...when every major department store is reducing it's retail footprint." As a former department store buyer, it's all very sad. My old "alma matter"...the once great store is now all but forgotten. There were many wonderful times along with the excitement of San Francisco in the late 70's and early 80's. View Full Size

Post# 900862 , Reply# 85 9/28/2016 at 15:23 (2,765 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes 1 *Oh, no doubt!* CBS radio news today reported that Sears credit along with at least two other chains are at risk, and their stock price keeps falling. Who knows, with malls closing and being demolished, we may see an urban renewal of downtown multi floor department stores again some day. Those new young yuppy techs who live in city lofts like to shop also. Why drive to the suburbs?

Post# 901045 , Reply# 86 9/29/2016 at 17:29 (2,764 days old) by washman (o)
Checkrate/Likes 1 *The end might be closer than we think* You need not have a BS in Econ 101 to read between the lines here. Eddie has pretty much milked all the cows he can find. In retail, when your comp store sales decline quarter after quarter after quarter, it is not long before you are at the end of the financial rope. True, most of the sales declines are due to store closings, but always look at comp store sales. That is where you take a retailer's "pulse" if you will. CLICK HERE TO GO TO washman's LINK

Post# 901067 , Reply# 87 9/29/2016 at 20:56 (2,764 days old) by joeypete (Concord, NH)
Checkrate/Likes As sad as it is, I think honestly they are probably better off dumping K Mart and focusing on the Sears brand. There just isn't enough market share for them to support 2 different stores. I believe Sears still has a lot of life left in it...actually when I hear most people talking about getting appliances, Sears always comes up...they are still clearly a leader in that category. Kenmore, Craftsman, and their auto division do very well. They should really focus on that and try to modernize Sears. I hate to see K Mart be a causality, but there's just not much there anymore.

Post# 901223 , Reply# 88 9/30/2016 at 14:53 (2,763 days old) by dermacie (my forever home (Glenshaw, PA))
Checkrate/Likes *i remember* Kelly & Cohen was where my parents bought the big old console television that sat in our living room for nearly 20 years. My mom kept trying to find a man or woman to repair it. I admit i miss the picture it was the best.

Post# 901766 , Reply# 89 10/4/2016 at 15:39 (2,759 days old) by washman (o)
Checkrate/Likes *Eddie responds to rumors* Denial. Of course. CLICK HERE TO GO TO washman's LINK

Post# 902138 , Reply# 90 10/7/2016 at 13:53 (2,756 days old) by twintubdexter (Palm Springs)
Checkrate/Likes *When it comes to Sears and Kmart...* Just remember what the late Rona Barrett used to say..."just keep thinking those gooooooooood thoughts". View Full Size

Post# 902144 , Reply# 91 10/7/2016 at 14:45 (2,756 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes *Yes, Rona* said that every morning after the Hollywood gossip segment, then Erma Bombeck came on with "if life is a bowl of cherries, why am I in the pits?

Post# 914628 , Reply# 92 1/8/2017 at 12:58 (2,663 days old) by washman (o)
Checkrate/Likes *Keep on cuttin Eddie* Wall Street loves you. CLICK HERE TO GO TO washman's LINK

Post# 914630 , Reply# 93 1/8/2017 at 13:03 (2,663 days old) by ea56 (Cotati, Calif.)
Checkrate/Likes FYI Joe, Rona Barrett ain't late yet! I just googled her and she's still among the living. Eddie

Post# 914648 , Reply# 94 1/8/2017 at 14:04 (2,663 days old) by joeypete (Concord, NH)
Checkrate/Likes Maybe Trump will save Sears/KMart? hahahahahahahahahaha

Post# 914649 , Reply# 95 1/8/2017 at 14:07 (2,663 days old) by panthera (Rocky Mountains)
Checkrate/Likes *Cheyenne K-Mart closing* Employees (including manager) found out in the local newspaper. Our local Sears (worst Cl*tr F**k in the State) will be kept open. Which is stupid beyond words - everybody in town like the K-Mart, nobody patronizes this Sears. Picked up quite a few good bargains, including a Chromebook I've always wanted to try. Saved a few hundred dollars, in all. Sad, though - Lambert has a lot to answer for.

Post# 914657 , Reply# 96 1/8/2017 at 14:25 (2,663 days old) by joeypete (Concord, NH)
Checkrate/Likes They just have no real direction...except that he wants it to be a "tech" company. But this story is being played out with other stores too...S/K have just been going downhill longer. I always thought they should have acquired or merged with a wholesale club like BJ's...put Sears and KMart under one roof....Sears would handle the tools, appliances, yard equipment, and automotive...the other side would be KMart with your traditional wholesale club stuff...perhaps offer smaller quantities as well to draw in more people. They could expand on their Shop Your Way by it being a membership fee to get in...just like the others. Would certainly have given them an edge. It's too bad Super K's have gone by the wayside. They were my first "supercenter" experience and they had an outstanding product in the 90's and early 2000's. If anything they should combine Sears/KMart in rural areas where there is no competition. They would do very well. Maybe I should apply to take over? haha

Post# 914663 , Reply# 97 1/8/2017 at 15:10 (2,663 days old) by vacerator (Macomb, Michigan)
Checkrate/Likes 1 *Joe,* your second to last post made my day! Wanting to be a tech. company is the latest fad. Like all the .COM's that went belly up in 2000. Now every company has a .COM Remember Y2K? It didn't happen until 2008. Meryl Lynch was bullish on America until the stearn bear killed the bull.

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