Sears closing 50 more stores -- 2016

[ChrisPace]

Harbor freight has an announcement on their webpage "Opening 3 stores a week average"

 

[OldmanB]

We have Sears, about a mile from here, 108,000 sq ft., open in 2007. I don't know how/why they keep it open, I drive by it daily and there is usually only a half dozen cars in the lot, except for Sat.

 

[kctyphoon]

Everyone mentions the tools in Sears - but if you walk around you'd see one of the most popular clothing lines is no longer sold at Sears either.. There is no longer one rack that has anything from Carhartt in the stores I've been in.. Only thing they have is the socks, and maybe the boots (I'm not sure about the boots).. If you ask me, that's a HUGE opportunity missed. I live in one of the most densely populated areas in the U.S. - and there is NO Carhartt outlet anywhere for hundreds of miles, and only a handful of Carhartt stores in the country. It seems Sears dedicated the rack space to try and push Craftsman labeled work clothes, which is probably the worst thing they could have done. All they would need to do to bring in a large number of shoppers is to start selling the COMPLETE line of Carhartt clothes..

Carhartt has expanded its line again and again, and it's one of the hardest clothing lines to purchase accurately online because everything they have fits differently. Shopping online for their stuff is a nightmare, and my thought is because they use SO may different countries to produce their stuff.. I have some shirts that I need a large to fit into, some needs to be XL, same with the jackets.. I go from Large to XL, to XL tall depending on the model. Seems like if Sears would just carry their complete line, it would promote business for BOTH companies.. Takes me 2 tries for some things to order the right sizes of Carhartt stuff online.. Even Timberland has outlet stores I can shop at, but Carhartt is a nightmare, and STILL one of the most popular jackets and jeans around..

 

[BDT/NWMN]

Carhartt.. A quality brand name that gives a customer a good reason to enter the front door. Names like Red Wing, Carhartt, Walls, and Columbia win my vote when shopping for workwear.. I agree about making sure it fits before making a purchase,,,,, and favor the stores that make this possible to do so..

 

[drink]

From what I understand Sears has had several stores that were not performing well and they were being carried by stores that were doing well. Sears has been closing the poor performing stores and keeping the good stores open. I have also heard Sears has been trying to have a store open to serve a certain zone or geographic market area. It sounds like Sears is pulling back, recovering from the losses on the books from underperforming stores, and keeping a minimum presence in the market. For all I know Sears might begin building new stores in the future that might be more appealing.

With Walmart closing stores it sounds like difficult times for now. They say Walmart has been closing small Walmart stores. It sounds like brick and mortar stores are having a heck of a time in today's online market. With more USA jobs going offshore it just keeps adding to an economic downturn in a lot of ways.

 

[BDT/NWMN]

From what I understand Sears has had several stores that were not performing well and they were being carried by stores that were doing well. Sears has been closing the poor performing stores and keeping the good stores open. I have also heard Sears has been trying to have a store open to serve a certain zone or geographic market area. It sounds like Sears is pulling back, recovering from the losses on the books from underperforming stores, and keeping a minimum presence in the market. For all I know Sears might begin building new stores in the future that might be more appealing.

With Walmart closing stores it sounds like difficult times for now. They say Walmart has been closing small Walmart stores. It sounds like brick and mortar stores are having a heck of a time in today's online market. With more USA jobs going offshore it just keeps adding to an economic downturn in a lot of ways.

When watching some of these places being built; too big or overbuilt come to mind... If the owners were given the choice of a smaller store that turned it's inventory several times a week, vs a larger mega store that turns it once a month or year;;; which would You choose..? Some of these whopper stores are too big for the front door customer numbers, cost a bundle to build and maintain, and when there is one or two items per peg on the display racks? What do they gain?

 

[nutsnbolts]

Personally, I think this is just the start of things to come...brick and mortar stores everywhere will be failing, in all different sectors. People just don't want to go shopping anymore when they can just click and have things delivered.

Case in point, this Christmas I had all of my shopping done by Halloween except for one thing...that was a picture frame and mat that I needed to go pick out and size in person. I finally got around to it around Dec. 10th or so, and was surprised when there wasn't heavy traffic, and the store wasn't busy at all. All the rest of it I had done online.

I believe the article I read after the new year said that brick & mortar sales were down something like 16% from last year. Companies will reduce their store counts and beef up their online support.

 

[DonPowers]

The closest Sears to me, 35 miles, closed over a year ago. Now the closest is around 180 miles away.

 

[JonnyMac]

There are quite a lot of kmarts in australia and they are very popular and are expanding... itll be interesting to see what happens to them
.
They might do the a buy out thing. Target did it in the 90's i think.. its still target here with the same logo but totally separate from the US company..

 

[volaredon]

Good riddance.

 

[Doohickey]

I thought Sears still owned Craftsman, but I noticed some interesting info on the Craftsman Club site:

https://club.craftsman.com/discussions/1936

The three Sears brands were packaged into KCD (Kenmore, Craftsman, Diehard) and given to Sears Reinsurance in Bermuda.

 

[metal1313]

Everyone mentions the tools in Sears - but if you walk around you'd see one of the most popular clothing lines is no longer sold at Sears either.. There is no longer one rack that has anything from Carhartt in the stores I've been in.. Only thing they have is the socks, and maybe the boots (I'm not sure about the boots).. If you ask me, that's a HUGE opportunity missed. I live in one of the most densely populated areas in the U.S. - and there is NO Carhartt outlet anywhere for hundreds of miles, and only a handful of Carhartt stores in the country. It seems Sears dedicated the rack space to try and push Craftsman labeled work clothes, which is probably the worst thing they could have done. All they would need to do to bring in a large number of shoppers is to start selling the COMPLETE line of Carhartt clothes..

Carhartt has expanded its line again and again, and it's one of the hardest clothing lines to purchase accurately online because everything they have fits differently. Shopping online for their stuff is a nightmare, and my thought is because they use SO may different countries to produce their stuff.. I have some shirts that I need a large to fit into, some needs to be XL, same with the jackets.. I go from Large to XL, to XL tall depending on the model. Seems like if Sears would just carry their complete line, it would promote business for BOTH companies.. Takes me 2 tries for some things to order the right sizes of Carhartt stuff online.. Even Timberland has outlet stores I can shop at, but Carhartt is a nightmare, and STILL one of the most popular jackets and jeans around..

for lots of carhartt in nj, go to flemington department stores, good selection of work wear and boots, and just about everything else in the world too

 

[KraftwerkMk1Jetta]

for lots of carhartt in nj, go to flemington department stores, good selection of work wear and boots, and just about everything else in the world too

Ramsey's Outdoors in Ledgewood, NJ also has a ton of Carhartt stuff, along with a lot of other good brands like Woolrich, Columbia, Red Wings,etc.

 

[BDT/NWMN]

I thought Sears still owned Craftsman, but I noticed some interesting info on the Craftsman Club site:

https://club.craftsman.com/discussions/1936

The three Sears brands were packaged into KCD (Kenmore, Craftsman, Diehard) and given to Sears Reinsurance in Bermuda.

Thanks for posting that link; as it offers a glimmer of hope for the folks who wish to see these brands live on.. Craftsman woodworking tools and Kenmore appliances have been some of my pet choices for decades.. There are five Craftsman toolboxes in my shop, and a host of valued older mechanic tools.... It is 2016; I wouldn't consider purchasing all their off-shored mechanic tool offerings,, but there are still SOME that I consider a good buy.. Like what has been mentioned in other threads; the Craftsman brand has been placed on tools from many small USA manufacturers. This has kept some American Workers employed.. That is something that I LIKE..

 

[coleman10]

I went to the Sears near me to get a gear puller and was happy to find one made in the USA behind the Taiwanese variants. Went to the counter and said to the older guy "got the last American one!" he looked at me like I was a nut lmao. People just don't understand.

I was there yesterday and found a few no name sockets and extensions on the rack that some thief either swapped or returned for exchange. I brought them up to the guy at the counter who has been there every time I've been in that particular store and told him that they weren't Craftsman tools. He looked at them and asked me how I knew. Huh? He had to verify it with another associate. Really? What a dimwit. He's probably the one who took them back.

 

[winlinmac]

As far as warranty goes, since Craftsman doesn't actually make the tools, I'm sure their contractors (Western Forge, Mayhew, Wilde, and the like) can still honor lifetime warranty replacements on hand tools.

 

[Davefr]

As far as warranty goes, since Craftsman doesn't actually make the tools, I'm sure their contractors (Western Forge, Mayhew, Wilde, and the like) can still honor lifetime warranty replacements on hand tools.

There's no way these OEM's will honor a CM retail warranty without Sears.

Why would they incur the cost? Especially when Sears gave them all the "boot" and moved sourcing to China.

 

[krux]

There is no point to sears. There quality is not there and the pricing is not even comparable to a big box store. I have heard from co workers there 1800 customer service is horrible.

 

[ChrisPace]

It's not just Sears guys, If we were paying attention we would have noticed the hundreds of other big name stores are closing, It's been a long drawn out recession of nearly 8 years! Some are gone all together, Best Buy, Walmart, Radio Shack, Sears, Macy's, Dillard's, the list goes on and on. We now have adults our age working at carwash's and McDonalds.

 

[Doohickey]

It's not just Sears guys, If we were paying attention we would have noticed the hundreds of other big name stores are closing, It's been a long drawn out recession of nearly 8 years! Some are gone all together, Best Buy, Walmart, Radio Shack, Sears, Macy's, Dillard's, the list goes on and on. We now have adults our age working at carwash's and McDonalds.

The bankrupt Kmart bought out Sears back in 2004. Since then, the hedge fund manager who made it all happen has convinced himself that he's a retail expert.


Radioshack was about two decades late to get around to admitting their problem:

The majority of the U.S. stores being shutdown by Walmart are from that Walmart Express experiment (supposed to have competed with dollar stores).

 

[davewo]

Radioshack was about two decades late to get around to admitting their problem:

I don't agree with this commercial at all. Radio Shack abandoned their 1949-1990 legacy a long rime ago. The commecial showed characters removing products they don't actually sell and then showed what Radio Shack has looked like for years - a place in mall to buy gimmicky Christmas gifts and cell phones.

 

[ibedayank]

I don't know who wrote the story, But they screwed up, K-mart owns Sears not the other way around.

that was true at one time now an investment group owns it all Bain Capital

 

[Fordman7795]

that was true at one time now an investment group owns it all Bain Capital

Kmart holdings bought sears then grouped them all into Sears Holding Corp which is a publicly traded company. I dont see anywhere that Bain owns anything of sears. Do you have a source?


Edit: Bain owns Apex tools which makes some craftsman tools. As far as i know, Bain does not own any of sears directly.

 

[kythri]

Bain doesn't own any part of Sears.

Additionally, Sears Reinsurance wasn't "given" KCD. KCD sold asset-backed notes to the tune of $1.8 billion, which were bought by Sears Reinsurance. If KCD defaults on those notes, the trademark rights held by KCD (and the royalty income from those) - i.e. the assets backing the notes - fall to Sears Reinsurance, as they were used as collateral.

It's a lot of voodoo bookkeeping, to be sure.

The "upside" to this, if anything, is that the brands have been separated from the monolith entity that is "Sears" so if the entire retail chain crashes, the brands are still around to be licensed out.

 

[Davefr]

The "upside" to this, if anything, is that the brands have been separated from the monolith entity that is "Sears" so if the entire retail chain crashes, the brands are still around to be licensed out.

But who would want the CM brand?? Maybe Greatneck Tools??

 

[kythri]

A lot of people still see the brand as good - most of them aren't members here, I'd imagine.

SHC is getting the brand out there to a lot of places, and I've seen it start cropping up in independent stores as well.

While we may not be happy with what is put out under that name, I'm pretty confident that it will weather the storm.

Kenmore and DieHard? I dunno. We're not seeing those brands outside of Sears quite yet.

 

[skunkape1]

In my frantic quest to find the remaining Craftsman made in USA socket sets and a few other tools, I have been visiting one big Sears in the mall and two Sears "Hometown" stores that are in towns of about 15,000 people. I have also been visiting 4 Ace Hardware stores and having good luck.

The big store is a ghost town but the "Hometown" stores have pretty steady business. The stores owner(s) are usually working and they are very competent and knowledgeable compared to the lifeless workers at the big store.

The Hometown stores seem to do a steady business in washer/dryers and lawn mowers. The employees think I'm half-nuts spending an hour picking around for the last USA set in the back of the rack but it affords me a good opportunity to hear what kind of business they're doing. The bins that hold the "hot deals" are one half empty or more so it looks like they sell a fair amount of tools as well.

I think there will always be a place for a brick and mortar store that sells large items like washers and dryers and lawn tractors. These are items not usually bought online, I think?

So, is there a future for the Hometown stores?

I have to say that the hunt for the last USA made tools that I'm currently into is fun. The time is right now to grab the last of the USA stuff. For example, in most cases the USA set or tool is the last one remaining. The prices actually are less than online prices as many online sellers are tacking a "USA" premium onto their prices.

 

[Yv.]

Its sad to hear but they brought it on themselves I guess.

 

[zendriver]

With Craftsman tools now made in China, there is no reason not to shop at HF. Their tool quality is as good, or better, at a much lower price.

The HF red tool chests, put Craftsman to shame, at 1/2 the price.

Sears was the original "online" retailer, even if it was the post office, making the transaction.

They moved away - almost completely to, the retail store, which just like nearly every other "brick and mortar", retailer, no longer get the job done.

Welcome to the real world.

 

[ChrisPace]

I would buy Craftsman sockets, extensions, wrench's and screwdrivers from Sears over Harbor freight any day. Partly because they are so consistent with product lines. Plus much better selection of sizes.
Ratchets, They are both made in Taiwan now but might pick either brand. The Craftsman Thin Profiles ratchets are still nice tools

 

[Mark in Indiana]

One thing that Sears has over HF is that you can buy individual sockets there. HF only sells socket sets. A few months back, I needed a 9/16"-6PT - 1/2" drive socket. Our local Sears had it. Not even the industrial suppliers had one in stock. It was frustrating that it was made in China, but it got me out of a jam for 6$.

 

[Al Borland]

So, who makes craftsman now? Are they Apex products?
Or just generic Chinese?

 

[winlinmac]

Western Forge, Wilde, Knipex, Mayhew, Stanley, & Vessel the list goes on as far as US, German, and Japanese manufacturers go. Danahar on the other hand is responsible for contracting most of the cheaper line of tools to manufacturers in China.

So, who makes craftsman now? Are they Apex products?
Or just generic Chinese?

 

[Brownsfan]

So, who makes craftsman now? Are they Apex products?
Or just generic Chinese?

Apex tool group is producing the ratchets, sockets ratcheting wrenchs and combo wrenches in China. A couple of ratchets are Taiwan made. There are various other companies making the rest.

 

[winlinmac]

Those ratchets Made in Taiwan by Apex are okay, but do wish they were made here in the heartland. I wonder why some think Craftsman Evolv are Made here.

 

[drink]

In my frantic quest to find the remaining Craftsman made in USA socket sets and a few other tools, I have been visiting one big Sears in the mall and two Sears "Hometown" stores that are in towns of about 15,000 people. I have also been visiting 4 Ace Hardware stores and having good luck.

The big store is a ghost town but the "Hometown" stores have pretty steady business. The stores owner(s) are usually working and they are very competent and knowledgeable compared to the lifeless workers at the big store.

The Hometown stores seem to do a steady business in washer/dryers and lawn mowers. The employees think I'm half-nuts spending an hour picking around for the last USA set in the back of the rack but it affords me a good opportunity to hear what kind of business they're doing. The bins that hold the "hot deals" are one half empty or more so it looks like they sell a fair amount of tools as well.

I think there will always be a place for a brick and mortar store that sells large items like washers and dryers and lawn tractors. These are items not usually bought online, I think?

So, is there a future for the Hometown stores?

I have to say that the hunt for the last USA made tools that I'm currently into is fun. The time is right now to grab the last of the USA stuff. For example, in most cases the USA set or tool is the last one remaining. The prices actually are less than online prices as many online sellers are tacking a "USA" premium onto their prices.

Yeah, I have made an effort to stock up on some of the last of the made in USA Craftsman hand tools. Do you have a Sears Outlet near you? Some of them have had some good deals on made in USA Craftsman hand tools during the past few months. Like you said earlier, Ace Hardware stores have a good selection of USA tools also. A lot of the sockets are 6 pointers.

 

[ChrisPace]

Hold the horses. I just read the article. They are only closing 4 Sears stores. Probably in dying malls. The rest are Kmarts


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[skunkape1]

Yeah, I have made an effort to stock up on some of the last of the made in USA Craftsman hand tools. Do you have a Sears Outlet near you? Some of them have had some good deals on made in USA Craftsman hand tools during the past few months. Like you said earlier, Ace Hardware stores have a good selection of USA tools also. A lot of the sockets are 6 pointers.

Unfortunately I don't have an outlet store near me. I've had little trouble finding six pointers as well. I think I have found every USA Cman tool/set that's now Chinese made for some time. One exception is reversible ratcheting combo wrench sets. A few singles but no sets and I've nearly exhausted my 40 mile radius of stores.

 

[ihateminimumwage]

Wow, according to the list the Pocatello Sears I worked freight at while in school is shutting down. No shock, since the mall it's in is maybe half emptied out at this point.

I still wish I would've taken a picture years ago when they had the banner out front that said, "We are still open!"

 

[marinusdees]

I could care less if all of our Sears stores shut down.


I think you mean "COULDN'T CARE LESS". Or, maybe, you do care??