I was
saddened to read of the impending demise of Sears this week…the company closing
142 stores and filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
I have many
fond memories of going to Sears Roebuck Inc. in my birth town of Alton with my
grandfather back in the day. It was a huge store to a little guy like me and
Grandpa was a devoted customer.
He bought
Craftsman brand tools there and Kenmore appliances. Sears was a big deal long
before my family embraced the store. The company started ironically as a mail
order catalog in the 1880s. Sears was king for decades in America with people
looking forward to their annual catalog where they could order everything from
bikes to sewing machines…..to even the materials and layout to entire homes.
The demise
has been swift. Wal-Mart, Target and Best Buy have been eating Sears’ lunch
with new stores…expanded ways of ordering on-line….and a strong emphasis on customer
service.
Sears stock has
gone into the toilet. In 2007 a share would cost you $141. Last year the price
was six bucks. Now the stock has gone below a buck.
The lessons
here are simple. Sears lost its way by not paying attention to market trends.
Here at the radio station, our web presence and social media platforms are
evolving constantly because we must to remain competitive. Wal-Mart is the new
Sears….a colossus with an on-line presence to go with low prices and new stores.
Now, if they could figure out customer service….
Sears joins
Toys R Us and Pay Less Shoe Source as huge retailers who have been forced into
bankruptcy. Sears thinks they can remake themselves as a smaller more cost
effective business and emerge.
With due
respect to Grandpa, who loved the store…I believe that ship has sailed.
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