Title: Why Sears Is Near Bankruptcy and Closing Stores
Headings: Decaying stores, plunging sales, and a remote CEO: How Sears was driven to the edge of bankruptcy
Decaying stores, plunging sales, and a remote CEO: How Sears was driven to the edge of bankruptcy
Hayley Peterson
Sears CEO Eddie Lampert.
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Content: As sales have tumbled from $53 billion in 2006 to less than $17 billion last year, Sears has closed hundreds of stores, reducing its total locations to 866 stores as of September 13, down from 1,980 stores in 2013. Business Insider
Some stores have suffered severe decay, such as crumbling walls, cracked floors, collapsing ceilings, and a lack of working toilets for weeks on end, according to store visits and interviews with Sears employees over the last two years. In addition to maintenance problems, several stores feature barren shelves and empty floors, which is likely the result of suppliers exacerbating Sears' problems by threatening to cancel contracts and demanding new payment terms for orders. Some stores have started hanging bed sheets and shower curtains from the ceiling to cover empty areas. The company has also introduced handwritten pricing signs in an apparent effort to slash costs. Lampert responded to the supplier troubles last year by blaming the news media in a rare interview and publicly threatening to sue two of its top tool vendors. Business Insider
He has also defended his investment strategy in stores. "I was criticized for not investing enough in the stores," Lampert said in 2013. " My point of view is we couldn't invest in everything." Some loyal shoppers are lamenting the loss of what was once America's most iconic retailer.