Things may be looking up for several fashion firms emerging from the so-called retail apocalypse — but others continue to navigate the pruning phase.
Struggling department store owner Sears Holdings Corp. today announced another round of store closures — its third such announcement this year — listing 46 “unprofitable” locations that it will shutter in November.
The new round of closures includes 13 Kmart doors and 33 Sears department stores.
“As part of our ongoing efforts to streamline Sears Holdings’ operations, strengthen our capital position and focus on our best stores, this week the company informed associates at 46 unprofitable stores that we will be closing these stores in November 2018,” the company said in a statement. “We continue to evaluate our network of stores, which is a critical component to our integrated retail transformation and will make further adjustments as needed.”
In January, Sears informed associates of its plans to shutter around 100 underperforming stores — including 39 Sears outposts and 64 Kmart locations — between March and April. Then, during its first-quarter earnings release in May, it said it had identified another 100 doors, 72 of which it planned to start liquidating in “the near future.”
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In addition to closing stores — as it continues to forge its path to renewed profitability — Sears has also tested new concepts — including a mini Kmart shop-in-shop in a Brooklyn Sears store this summer and attempts to offload the Kenmore brand and related assets.
Other department stores such as Macy’s and Kohl’s that appeared to initially stumble amid digital disruption — Macy’s closed around 100 stores and laid off thousands of workers over the past year — have more recently appeared to find their footing. Macy’s topped earnings forecasts when it reported second-quarter earnings last week and Kohl’s announced its fourth straight comparable store sales gain this week.
According to Sears’ latest form 10-Q with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, as of May 5, the company operated 894 full-line and specialty retail stores.
Regarding the latest round of closures, while the main department stores will close in November, some Sears auto care centers will close at later dates. Click here for a full list of store closures.
