According to parent Transformco, the demise of the last Sears store in Illinois has been greatly exaggerated and doesn’t accurately reflect the banner’s strategic direction.
The fact that Transformco has a strategic direction for Sears has been underappreciated, the company suggests.
Spokesperson Larry Costello pointed out that Sears continues to operate and expand its portfolio of smaller stores, consisting of Sears Hometown and Sears Home & Life, and sears.com. It also is building its services business. He pointed out that 11 of the franchised Hometown stores continue to operate in Illinois.
Costello added that Transformco continues to run more than 300 large and small format Sears and Kmart stores across the United States.
Transformco recently announced that it would close the Sears department store located in Schaumburg, IL, its last large store in the state where Sears was founded in 1893, in order to redevelop and reinvigorate the property and unlock the value of the real estate. The Woodfield Sears closes on November 14, Transforco stated.
“With redevelopment of this location focused primarily on retail use, we intend to reinvigorate and maximize the value of the real estate while enhancing the consumer experience with popular retailers that fit the regional draw of Woodfield Mall,” said Scott Carr, Transformco president of real estate, in announcing the store closure.
Transformco’s go-forward store strategy for Sears and Kmart, the company noted, is to operate a diversified portfolio consisting of a small number of larger, premier stores with a larger number of small-format stores supported by its Shop Your Way rewards program, online marketplace and buy online, pick up in-store capabilities. The company will continue to expand both Hometown Stores and Home & Life stores, with three stores, in cities and towns that previously had larger format stores. Transformco pointed out that it also plans to expand the Home Services business, brands including Kenmore and DieHard and Fintech through its Shop Your Way rewards program.
