Sears, Kmart to Close 100+ Stores Nationwide

Sears Holdings Corp. is considering closing as many as 120 Sears and Kmart stores nationwide in order to focus on its stronger stores, according to an article in Reuters.

"Given our performance and the difficult economic environment, especially for big-ticket items, we intend to implement a series of actions to reduce on-going expenses, adjust our asset base, and accelerate the transformation of our business model," Chief Executive Officer Lou D'Ambrosio said in a press release Tuesday.

"These actions will better enable us to focus our investments on serving our customers and members through integrated retail – at the store, online and in the home."

NPR points out, however, that Sears Holdings Corp., parent of Kmart and Sears, Roebuck, has "4,000 full-line and specialty retail stores in the United States and Canada" – which means the closings will amount to about 3 percent of the company's stores.

The decision to close the stores comes after overall sales fell 5.2 percent this quarter; holiday sales also fell compared to last year.

Sales at Sears Holdings – the corporation formed through the merger of Sears and Kmart, which was headquartered in Troy until merging with Sears in 2005 – have fallen every year since the merger, according to the article.

The company has not yet released a list of the locations that will be closing, and it is not known if the at will be on the list. The store could not be reached for comment.

The list will eventually be posted on the Sears Media website.