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Wednesday,
4 February 2005 :: 12:12 pm
Select
Kmart Stores to become 'Sears Grand'
Select Kmart stores in
the U.S. will become 'Sears Grand' stores by May. The change will
also effect Sears Essentials stores which will also become 'Sears
Grand' stores. The retailer decided to make the change to become
more competitive.
In Spring 2005, Sears
launched the Essentials store. Twnety-five of them were opened in
former Kmart locations and six vacant Wal-Mart locations. The deal
cost $576 million and took place before the merger was announced.
Sears Essentials' stores
were from 85,000 to 110,000 square feet. They were designed to be
located in neighborhoods rather than in a shopping center. They
offer items such as appliances, lawn and garden, tools and home
fashions. You'll also find Kmart products you've come to expect
such as health and beauty, pet supplies and canned/boxed food.
UBS Analyst Gary Balter
said, "We believe this could mark the beginning of
the end of the Kmart brand as Sears continues to transition locations
to the Sears Essential format after the merger continues."
Sears Holdings Corp.
has announced that they will upgrade the Sears Essentials stores
into Sears Grand stores. The same will happen with some 14 Kmart
stores across the U.S. Chris
Brathwaite is a spokesman for Sears. He said, "We are
not ditching the (Sears Essentials) format. We are retooling it.
The next wave of stores will have a number of exciting improvements
to the off-mall format."
In Michigan, three Sears
Essentials stores will become Sears Grand. The three stores that
will be affected are located in Rochester Hills, Warren and Brighton.
However, they are not expected to be converted in the first round.
It will take more time before they become Sears Grand.
Last year, Sears reported
that around 400 Kmarts would be converted into Sears Essentials
stores by 2007. Currently, only 50 stores recieved the upgrade.
What is a Sears Grand?
They offer products from both traditional Sears and Kmart Stores.
You'll find groceries with general merchandise as well. The idea
is to compete directly with Wal-Mart. The stores will be from 160,000
to 210,000 square feet of space. It is about 2x the size of a Sears
store that you would find in a shopping center.
Photo
©Sears Holdings Corp.
One
of the grocery aisles inside a Sears Grand store.
Photo
©Sears Holdings Corp.
The
checkouts inside a Sears Grand store.
Photo
©Sears Holdings Corp.
The
exterior of a Sears Grand store.
Sources:
Sears, Roebuck
& Co.- http://www.sears.com/
Kmart Corp.
- http://www.kmart.com/
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