Sears "burning money" & closing stores

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Betcha he is too......

As a business owner and working in the service industry as a business owner, it infuriates me at all the "FAT CATS" that line their pockets and leave the others out for salvage. They don't give a damn, nor do they have any respect for themselves, let alone the "hourly" persons who have made them their fortune.

Aside form all that, have a personal acquaintance that has been working at the "Blue Light Special" for almost 36 years now. She refuses to believe that HER store is going to close, when all of them here except, hers in the Panama City Florida area have locked the doors.

Had built a new house a while back (4 years ago) an did purchase all new appliances for the kitchen & garage only from Sears. (Mind you I left out the laundry room) From the get go, 3 of them were DOA's. Sears, with their A & E appliance specialists were nothing but ignorant, rude, and unprofessional bumbling folks. One went to the store to discuss it with the highers that be, and said, this kind of service will kill your business. This is just one occurrence that one wishes to list as an example, whilst all other examples listed are of fact as well.

As far as the "BOX Store's" in general, I hate them. Mom and pops are readily available around my parts of this planet, and let me say, that's where I shop if at all possible. Both business and personal.

Good luck Sears. What a shame.
 
I have to agree with all of you.   They say " The Shop Your Way"  discount card is lowering Sears profit margin.  There are not a enough participants to offset the loss.  I think that may be window dressing.  Investors did receive stock at this point on spin- offs like, "Lands End".  I think it is a slow motion liquidation.
 
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 14pt;">Last weekend when we went shopping for our new dishwasher, the local GE appliance dealer was the same price as Home Depot.  We went local.</span>
 
Haven't bought an appliance at Sears in years now... like above, our local indy dealers will match or beat Sears, HD, Lowes and give free delivery and haul away. And if it's in their stock you can pretty much get it the next day. An article I read not too long ago in the Toronto paper pretty much summed it all up to a slow liquidation to keep the stocks from crashing.
 
Mom 'n' Pop shops whenever possible

Personally, I can't stand the mom and pop shops.

I'll only go if there is something that can't be be found find elsewhere.
Return policies are usually a major hassle, they hate to let the money go, If an item is opened or lightly used forget about a cash refund. Moreover, when a dispute arises there is no appeal to a store manager or such, often the owner or his wife is the one arguing with you and then you don't want to shop there anymore because next time the same person is behind the counter.
 
I haven't shopped

at Kmart or Sears in years. Wanna know why?

Kmart is just so horribly depressing. The store looks like it's caught up in a 1980's time warp, and is full out outdated, just, unwanted stuff.

Really. There are still Launch Day Xbox 360's from 2005, still in our K-Mart, and this is 2014! I'm serious. I remember seeing them there in 2010, and according to there website, that UPC from the Box, is still in stock at our local store, at full price. Ugh, No Thanks.

And we used to have a Sears, at a upscale mall, in our area, but it simply closed after they lost their lease to a much higher end store. For me to physically shop there, I'd have to go out to the Beyond Ghetto area, where I'd probably get robbed out in the parking lot. Yes, it's that bad.

There going under, because of multiple reasons.

1 - There stores are not being remodeled, or relocated into better areas. So, unless you live in the absolute slums, you'll have a much better experience shopping at Target & Walmart, if your looking for a discount department store.

2 - There prices are simply higher, than competitors. Both Walmart & Target, will undercut them considerably. Why would I go out of my way, to shop there, when there's no real advantage.

3 - Every Single time, I've been into their stores, there are probably 2-3 people running the whole store. They will simply have 8-10 people, waiting in line to check out, at all times. They have never been reasonably staffed.

I can't think of a single reason, I'd need to shop there. And I feel bad, for those, who do. It's just not good.
 
MIch:

I second you, wholeheartedly.

The last time I shopped at KMart was the last time I will shop at KMart. Air conditioning wasn't working on a hot day, half the lighting was off to keep the place cooler - very depressing. Merchandise selections were way down and the whole place was messy. I was there for two things - a watch battery and a Weed-Eater.

They've dropped watch batteries altogether, so no go there. I was able to buy a Weed-Eater at a good price, but it was the only one of its kind in stock, and when I got it home, I found that it was a repack - something that had been returned and put back in the box.

Just depressing all the way 'round, and I bid them a silent farewell. They won't be around much longer, trust me. The one here in Waterloo is right next to one of the busiest Hy-Vee locations in town. The Hy-Vee parking lot is usually very full to jammed. The KMart parking lot usually has fewer than 15 cars in it. Sometimes way fewer.

What's pathetic about all this is that that particular Hy-Vee is one of the worst-run grocery stores I have ever seen or ever hope to see (some other locations here - not all of them - are nicer and better-run). If people will put up with that Hy-Vee and won't put up with that KMart, you know it's bad.
 
Hy-Vee

Sandy,

Don't know bout Hy-Vee's. But betcha here in the deep south we can beat your experience. We have a grocery called Grocery Outlet. Wanna here gehto ignorance and see the motions/attitude. Come on in, you're in for a ride, especially the 1st Friday and Saturday after the 1st. YIKES man,it's no telling what you will experience. Yep, Rent-A-Cop is there full time. Sometime more than a single.

Three weeks ago. Go in with a friend. Get items. Approach 1 of 3 belts open. She's eating a salad at her register out of a styrofoam bowl. Only after one loads the belt does she acknowledge we exists in her line. One says "would you like for me to go to another line so you can finish your lunch" Reply: Too Late Nah. Reaches for her cardboard Closed sign walks right in front of us and slams it down on first portion of the belt area. Yes, it is that way every time a visit is made. Real inexpensive prices, the only reason we even consider exposing ourselves to such behavior. BUT, like you say, they will not to go the Blue Light Special.
 
The DumbA#$$es

Could STILL be on top if they had 1 kept the catalogue and put it online as well, 2 kept their formula of good better and best, and 3 not tried to out price everyone else, they never were a high end retailer, thats what made them great, you could get a Lady Kenmore vacuum, fridge or washer for much less than anything else tol, but yet with more features, also you could get a bare bones bol appliance for less money than any other store, plus great service and you had a winning combo, now they are a joke!!They have lots of 1500 dollar and up appliances, but no cheaper ones, why would I buy a 1500 dollar sears appliance when I could get the same Whirlpool or whatever for 300 or so less????
 
DumbA#$$es

How correct you are Hans, they got out of catalogs just when everyone else was getting in with all kinds of specially catalogs, and they could have transitioned into on line sales if they had kept selling in your home.

One of Sears other biggest mistakes was selling all national brands of appliances instead of concentrating on their exclusive Kenmore appliances. When you try selling national brands out of a nice big store there is always someone that can undercut Sears on a WP washer. I used to love it when one of my customers said they were shopping at Sears for a new appliance, because I can almost always beat Sears's price.

Other big mistake was trying to service all brands, trying to service all brands ruined Sears service AND believe it or not some people actually liked Sears Service, but now you can call Sears no matter where you bought your appliances and no matter what appliances you own and get LOUSY service, LOL.
 
I've noticed the condition of particular K-mart stores seem to be a reflection of the communites in which they're located. Lower income locations are typically were the run down, poorly staffed stores are found.

The K-marts that I frequent in my area are well kept and the sales/clearances can't be beat.

It would be shame to see them close and be left with Walmart and ugh, Target..
 
Speaking of Sears

Received a letter this week from Citibank/Sears that my Sears account was being closed. Reason given? Inactivity.

There is some truth to this as one hasn't used the card in several years simply because do not shop at Sears stores and or cannot be bothered with their usury rates of interest. Despite having good to excellent credit Sears never would take the APR on our account below 27% or some such high number. All my other credit cards are in the middle teens. So tell me again why would one use Sears?

Probably the only place one used Sears card was for Land's End purchases and can easily put those on Amex or another card plus get reward points for the transaction.
 
Since Sears accepts MC/Visa at a much lower interest rate is there any need for the Sears card at all? When the IRS stopped allowing for interest on credit cards to be deducted from our annual tax return we dumped all of our store cards and now just use AMEX/MC/Visa and that's it.

What we have been using for major purchases are the special offers from store where if you purchase an item and pay it off within two years there is no interest. So we don't clutter up our credit cards with those kinds of purchases. We did our GE refrigerator like that. Plenty of stores offer this program, sometimes you have to ask.
 
Never Really Understood The Fascintation With Sears Credit

In the first place.

Like yourself only got one when needed an appliance and signed on for the interest free offer. Since then things have changed with Sears as their financing division has been sold off a few times (IIRC it went from GE to Citibank or some such).

Think Sears now does what no small number of "interest free" for a period schemes do; that is if the balance is not paid in full by the end of whatever *all* the accrued interest is added back onto the card with any remaining balance due. Again given Sears usury like rates that can be no small amount of change.

Most credit experts agree retail cards are best avoided unless part of a special promotion. They are good for building credit in some instances but often their rates are much higher than MC, Visa or Discover Cards.

Often saw no reason to use the Sears card say for a Land's End purchase if one was going to pay the entire balance off when the bill came anyway. Might as well use the Amex and rack up some points if it was going to be a "cash" transaction.

Since it looks as if Land's End may be spun off from Sears and or the entire thing going bankrupt/shutting down am not that worried about the account being closed. We have no Sears stores in Manhattan (nearest are out in Queens or Staten Island), and now that one has solved our broken dw problem no new appliance purchases are planned anytime soon.
 
Another Sad Sears Story

I thought I remembered a Sears connection to the Discover Card and Wikipedia confirmed it:

The Discover Card is a credit card, issued primarily in the United States. It was announced by Sears in 1985 and was introduced nationwide the following year. Discover was part of Dean Witter, and then Morgan Stanley, until 2007, when Discover Financial Services became an independent company. Novus, a major processing center, was once partners with the company. The Novus logo was retired, replaced by the Discover Network logo.

At the time the Discover Card was introduced, Sears was the largest retailer in the United States. It had purchased the Dean Witter Reynolds Organization (brokerage) and Coldwell, Banker & Company (real estate) in 1981[2] as an attempt to add financial services to its portfolio of customer services. Ray Kennedy, Sr, father of country singer Ray Kennedy and the credit manager for Sears, conceived the card.[3] Together with the Discover Card (and its issuing bank, the Greenwood Trust Company, owned by Sears), this was named the Sears Financial Network. Early Discover Cards bore a small embossed symbol representing the Sears Tower, then the company's headquarters.
Discover and Novus retired acceptance mark (still seen in many places)

Unlike other attempts at creating a credit card to rival MasterCard and Visa, such as Citibank's Choice card, the Discover Card quickly gained a large national consumer base. It carried no annual fee, which was uncommon at the time, and offered a typically higher credit limit than similar cards. Cardholders could earn a "Cashback Bonus," in which a percentage of the amount spent would be refunded to the account (originally 2%, now as high as 5%), depending on how much the card was used. Retailers[who?] were wooed by merchant fees significantly lower[citation needed] than those of other widely accepted credit cards. The Discover Card was also noteworthy for being the only credit card accepted by the U.S. Customs Service to pay customs duty.[citation needed] Due to it not charging a percentage fee to retailers, unlike Visa, MasterCard, and American Express, Discover Card was also the only credit card accepted at Sam's Club; until recently they have started to accept MasterCard (see below). The plan to create a one-stop financial-services center in Sears stores was not as successful as Sears had hoped, and its promotion of the Discover Card was thought both to hurt Sears turnover and to restrict the card's potential. Other retailers resisted it, as they believed they would be helping their competitor.

In light of these developments, and with strong competition both from Wal-Mart and from so-called category killers such as Toys "R" Us, Sears began to face difficulties in the late 1980s. Sears sold its financial businesses in 1993, and began to accept MasterCard and Visa in addition to its store credit card and the Discover Card. The Discover Card became part of the Dean Witter financial services firm. Dean Witter Discover merged with Morgan Stanley in 1997. In 2000, Greenwood Trust changed its name to Discover Bank. [4]
Greenwood Trust Company
 
The Lands End deal was completed a few weeks ago.  The next  item up for auction is probably the  Auto Centers.
 

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