Sears Denies Reports of Closing Stores - Tire Review Magazine

Sears Denies Reports of Closing Stores

Sears-USA-Store-front-RSSears Holdings Corp. discredited Thursday’s report that said it will be closing more than 100 stores and auto centers, and cut nearly 5,500 jobs in the U.S.

Seeking Alpha, a financial news and market tracker, cited liquidation notices and employee communication sent out last month that announced the closures of 31 Sears Auto Centers, 46 Kmart stores and 30 Sears department stores. According to the reports, the closures are slated to come before Christmas and be completed by the end of January 2015.

Howard Riefs, a Sears spokesman, told the Associated Press in an email that the store count and list of closures was inaccurate. The AP said that Riefs declined to offer further details on the closings except that Sears would update its store count in its Q3 financial results due in November.

“As we have previously communicated, adjusting our physical footprint to focus on our best performing locations is a core component of our transformation. While this has resulted in store closures where appropriate — decision that we do not take lightly — we continue to have a substantial nationwide footprint with a presence in many of the top malls in the country,” wrote Riefs.

Sears Holdings, which has piled up a string of bad sales and financial results over the last several years, closed 75 Kmart stores and 21 Sears stores in the first half of 2014.

Recently, Sears Holdings announced it was selling most of its stake in Sears Canada for a reported $380 million, generating much-needed cash ahead of the crucial holiday shopping season, according to a Reuters report.

In December 2013, the company raised about $500 million from the spinoff of its Lands’ End clothing business and $165 million from the sale of real estate.

This past September, Sears Holdings also took a short-term loan of $400 million from chairman and CEO Eddie Lampert’s ESL Partners LP.

These efforts and others have resulted in further losses for the company. The New York Times reported that for the quarter ended Aug. 2, Sears lost $573 million, up drastically from $194 million in the year ago period. That brought the retailer’s losses for the second half of the fiscal year to $975 million.

You May Also Like

Maxxis-sponsored athletes make podium, overall top 10 at Mint 400

Maxxis athletes Michael McFayden, Ethan Ebert and Trey Gibbs had podium finishes at the Mint 400 on Maxxis RAZR XT tires.

2024-mint400-maxxis

Maxxis sponsored athletes Michael McFayden and Ethan Ebert finished the Mint 400 on the podium and Trey Gibbs turned in a fourth place performance in his class and seventh overall. The Minto 400 is coined “The Great American Off-Road Race.”

McFayden was second in UTV Pro NA, finishing the four-lap race in nine hours, 24 minutes and 38 seconds. He drove his Honda Talon on Maxxis RAZR XT tires. Ebert finished with a third-place spot on the 2WD podium and 13th overall, with a final time of seven hours, 41 minutes and 46 seconds. His Honda Ridgeline was outfitted with the same RAZR MT tires. Also riding RAZR MTs, Gibbs cracked the overall top 10 in seventh place and was fourth in Unlimited Spec after finishing in seven hours, 17 minutes and 46 seconds.

Autel Energy Showcases EV Charging Solutions, Electrified Bronco at CES

At CES, Autel Energy showcased its suite of EV charging solutions and an electrified 1969 Ford Bronco.

Autel-U.S.-Enters-EV-Charging-solutions-Industry
2019 Newsmakers: Bridgestone Americas

Nearly all products in the Firestone family of tires have been upgraded over the past three years, and Bridgestone is on track to have all of its consumer tire portfolio across both the Bridgestone and Firestone brands either upgraded or replaced by the end of 2020.

Bridgestone-Newsmakers-800x400
2019 Newsmakers: Nokian Tyres

Nokian Tyres opened its first U.S. manufacturing facility and launched numerous new products. See what’s in store for 2020.

Newsmakers-Nokian-800x400
2019 Newsmakers: Nexen Tire America

Nexen Tire opened its North American Technology Center and debuted the Roadian GTX. Find out what’s in store for 2020.

Nexen-Newsmakers-800x400

Other Posts

Sun Auto Tire reveals winner of Ford Bronco Sport giveaway

Lowell Anderson entered the giveaway at his local Sun Auto Tire & Service store while receiving a routine oil change.

Sun-Auto-Bronco-giveaway
Nokian Tyres holds bracket challenge on worst roads in North America

In 2023, the tiremaker’s audience voted Quebec as the province or state with the worst road conditions on the continent.

Pothole-Protection-from-Nokian-Tyres
Gallery: 2024 Big O Tires conference and convention

Highlights from this year’s Big O Tires conference and convention, featuring a general session, trade show and breakout sessions.

Gary-Skidmore
Bridgestone’s Firestone Liberia rubber farm receives ISCC Plus recognition

According to Bridgestone, its Liberia facility earned the ISCC Plus certification for its efforts in reducing environmental impacts.

Firestone_Liberia