Business Insider – by Haley Peterson
Sears is closing several stores and selling 16 others in an online auction.
The closing stores include Sears locations in Wilmington, North Carolina, and Youngstown, Ohio, as well as Kmart stores in Brandon, Florida, and Saugus, Massachusetts. Sears will also likely close its store at Tacoma Park Mall in Tacoma, Washington. The owner of the mall, Simon Property Group, recently revealed plans to demolish the Sears store and replace it with several buildings, including a movie theater.
Most of the stores will close between May and July, according to layoff notices filed by Sears. The stores were not included in two previously announced rounds of mass closures to be carried out this year, which affected a total of 166 stores.
Meanwhile, the company is selling a handful of stores online through a partnership with Cushman & Wakefield, a real-estate-services company, The Wall Street Journal reports.
The properties are advertised as sale and lease-back deals, meaning Sears would make rent payments to the winning bidders to remain in the space.
Some properties with flexible lease agreements would allow for the store space to be redeveloped into self-storage, hotel, or residential units, according to The Journal. Depending on the terms of the lease, it’s possible that the Sears stores could shut down entirely or shrink to take up less space on the property, as the company has done in a number of other stores.
Sears declined to comment on the store closures and auctions.
Buyers have until May 1 to signal interest in the properties for sale. In late May, an online auction will be held where interested buyers can bid on the properties in real time, according to Real Insight Marketplace.
The following Sears stores are for sale:
- Castleton Square Mall, Indianapolis, Indiana
- Southlake Mall, Merrillville, Indiana
- University Park Mall, Mishawaka, Indiana
- Twelve Oaks Mall, Novi, Michigan
- 330 Siemers Dr., Cape Girardeau, Missouri
- South County Center Mall, Mehlville, Missouri
- Mid Rivers Mall, Cottleville, Missouri
- Battlefield Mall, Springfield, Missouri
- Great Northern Mall, North Olmsted, Ohio
- Richland Mall, Mansfield, Ohio
- Southpark Center, Strongsville, Ohio
- Parkdale Mall, Beaumont, Texas
- Deerbrook Mall, Humble, Texas
- San Jacinto Mall, Baytown, Texas
- Rolling Oaks Mall, San Antonio, Texas
- Plaza Paseo Mall, Pasadena, Texas
Good riddance. I always hated Sears.
“The Sears & Roebuck Guarantee Company” got their start by finding quality items to sell and guaranteeing them, but their stores were never efficiently operated, and their catalog sales helped them stay afloat for so long because they could reach people who had no other shopping options.