Sears Holdings says it will close 142 unprofitable stores by the end of the year, as part of its Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection filing. This comes on top of the company's previously announced closures of 46 stores by the end of November.
The company has yet to identify which stores are to be closed, but it currently owns nearly 400 Sears stores and about 360 Kmarts. Sears Holdings, which once owned about 3,500 stores across the two banners, has already closed about 700 in the course of these past two years.
“Over the last several years, we have worked hard to transform our business and unlock the value of our assets," said Edward S. Lampert, chairman of Sears Holdings, in a statement released this morning. "While we have made progress, the plan has yet to deliver the results we have desired, and addressing the company's immediate liquidity needs has impacted our efforts to become a profitable and more competitive retailer.”
Chairman Edward S. Lampert (center) has stepped down as CEO
Lampert has stepped down as CEO, and the company has created what it calls an Office of the CEO in the meantime, whose members are Robert A. Riecker, CFO; Leena Munjal, chief digital officer of customer experience and integrated retail; and Gregory Ladley, president of apparel and footwear.
“The Chapter 11 process will give Holdings the flexibility to strengthen its balance sheet, enabling the company to accelerate its strategic transformation, continue rightsizing its operating model, and return to profitability,” the written statement reads. "Our goal is to achieve a comprehensive restructuring as efficiently as possible, working closely with our creditors and other debt holders, and [to] be better positioned to execute on our strategy and key priorities."
By Edmund Mander
Director, Editor-In-Chief/SCT
