Sears, KMart to Merge in $11 Billion Deal

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=6839288 ^

[CasearianDaoist]

Fon't the French own K-Mart?

[Justice]

Kears?

[listenhillary]

Sear-Mart would be hot.

[Justice]

S-Mart?

[ProudVet77]

Sears will be introducing Martha Stewart designer license plates in their auto shops. Each pair will be personally made by Martha from prison.

[MinuteGal]

Both entities have gone so far down the drain that I couldn't care less.

Leni

[Just mythoughts]

How about S-Mart?

[Eric Roelfsema]

K-Mart is a publicly traded company on the NYSE. Sears is as well.

This is a huge surprise, if this is true. There has been absolutely no talk about a merger of this kind at all.

K-Mart has been talking about moving their company headquarters within the state of Michigan, possibly to the Grand Rapids area, or to another state. There has been no talk that in the Michigan papers that K-mart was looking for a partner.

[The Red Zone]

Now there will be "Big S" stores? This is a Mutt and Jeff union.

[BlessedBeGod]

I'm greatly surprised, too.

But looks like AP has the story, too:

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/ap/20041117/ap_on_bi_ge/kmart_sears_merger

[Popman]

This is basically a real estate deal.

Sears is very interested in breaking out of their mall type anchor store mold to compete with the likes of Wally world.

[RWR8189]

Two companies with two failed business plans merge.

Sounds like a plan for success.

[southlake_hoosier]

It is being reported here in the Chicago area that Sears is not moving from their headquarters. Also, that K-Mart and Sears will keep operating under their own names.

[The Red Zone]

Hm, so there could be co-brand stores at K Mart sites? Or they would just close the K-Mart and open a Sears.

[Wooly]

Here in Kalifornia they will probably go for a niche market and call the store Kasa-Marto

[q_an_a]

Willie Green is going to have dozens of stories to put up as vendors and staff are cut out of these tow old line companies.

[Maigrey]

What this also does is give more market exposure for the newly merged company, with K-mart being the cheap cousin, and Sears being the middle-class cousin.

[capt. norm]

When you mentioned Sears HQ in Chicago I mentally pictured what a "K-Mart Tower" would look like.

[mowowie]

"Shop smart, Shop S-Mart"