It's interesting to read the speculation here from a consumer standpoint. I relate to SHC (Sears holding company--the corporatoin that owns Kmart and Sears) from a different standpoint. I deal with them as a vendor, meaning my company sells products. I agree that it's its a shame to see one of the last originators of the department store (Kmart was the first modern discount department store chain-BTW) continue to plummet. But let me tell you what is going on here. The CEO of SHC, Eddie Lampert is making a ton of money. He is very very good at that. The rumor on the street was that when he bought Kmart, he paid about $850MM. He immediately divested all of the bad stores and sold the properties, which were worth far more than the business. After all of the transactions were finished, it's estimated (and I'm sure it could be verified somewhere) that he bought SHC for a net of less than $20MM. Not a bad deal at all. It appears to me that he has found a way to pull off another deal. At $900MM on a brand that has paid for itself many times over, SHC is simply exploiting the opportunity to pad the bank. It was never about losing the quality tool image or providing great customer service in recent years, it's all about profit. Sad to say, but they never really kept up with the competition in terms of innovation and sourcing as well as shopping experience.
Unfortunately, the writing is on the wall for SHC, it's just a matter of when, not if.
Unfortunately, the writing is on the wall for SHC, it's just a matter of when, not if.
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