Anyone who is remotely related to business is a big fan of Sears. Sears was once the largest retailer in the world. However, since 2010, the company hasn’t turned a profit. Sears is now $134 million in debt and is at the edge of bankruptcy.
According to a report from CNBC on Wednesday, the company is approaching several banks to file for bankruptcy.
Sears was kept alive for so long by the grace of CEO, Eddie Lampert. Mr. Lampert was pumping in the bucks from his hedge fund, ESL Investment. This kept the company afloat. Considering the contribution of his hedge fund to Sears, the company share is now 31% to Mr. Lampert and 19% to his hedge fund.
Source- Sears Holdings
Earlier this year in August, Sears’ well-known appliance brand Kenmore was offered a buyout by ESL. The cash which would be generated from the buyout will help the company to survive for few more months. Sears had already sold off Craftsman in 2017, which was considered one of its major luxury brand.
Sears, the 125-year-old company, was once a staple of the Main Street. Hard to believe but the company had to shut down over 100 stores last year with 46 scheduled to get their shutter down in the next month. Just a year back, Sears Holdings stood at over 1000 stores.
Sears tried to match up with the modern trend of e-commerce when it paired up with Amazon in 2017. But Sears was still resistant to change and didn’t make much investment in the digital space, leading to its downfall.
Source- NBCnews.com
With roots in Patna, I am a Mechanical Engineer currently employed in Jabalpur. Working as a Senior Engineer in Heavy Machines Sales, I have been associated with different blog sites in different categories for over a year now. The categories include comics, sitcoms, movies and talent acquisitions.