Posted on 11/17/2004 3:37:25 AM PST by bikepacker67
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Sears, Roebuck & Co. and Kmart Holding Corp. on Wednesday said they would merge in an $11 billion deal to form the third-largest U.S. retailer.
The companies said in a joint statement that the new company, Sears Holdings, will have about $55 billion in annual revenues, 2,350 full-line and off-mall stores, and 1,100 specialty retail stores.
Is there any way we can all keep this from my wife? I have enough Ginsu knives, Bamboo steamers, et al...but wait there's more...... Please no mas....
"Two companies with two failed business plans merge."
Same thing I thought when HP bought out Compaq. They should have left Compaq die the natural death it was on track to do. My opinion is ... only thing Compaq brought to the table was their bad name.
Thats Target.
loser + loser = LOSER
...so there could be co-brand stores at K Mart sites? Or they would just close the K-Mart and open a Sears.
They will actually do a little of both, where K-Mart brand identity is strong and profitable, they will stay K-Marts, but be merchandised more like Sears store, think Craftsman tools, appliances, etc.
The prime real estate spots will definitely be converted to stand alone new concept, "Grand Sears" stores. Modeled after the Wally World type concept, Food, Clothing, Garden center, etc,
Craftsman tools at K-Mart?
Wait a minute - they're now available at the Navy Exchange, cheaper than out in town.
The jokes for the late nighters just kind of start writing themselves.
Sears has really turned into a high quality customer focused store. They have been bits of both over the years but have improved in both areas of late IMO.
I was looking - well, actually drooling - over a 52 flat screen TV the past Saturday at Sears. The salesman walked up and offered without my asking: "You bring me the best price you can find on that TV (new) anywhere from any source and I will beat the price by 10%."
A merger of losers.
AOL + Time + Warner ad infinitum. The synergy is awesome.
AOL has created an ISP called Netscape to salvage the customers leaving its overpriced service.
What will come of Lands End? Will it like Netscape become the synergistic repository of the Martha Stewert brand?
Yes, but will they sell shotguns?
Fascinating trend - BTT
ROTFL !!!!!!
Didn't Sears buy Lands End a few years back? What did that gain them?
I had the exact same experience. Last year for Christmas, (before I worked for Sears) I went shopping for a big screen TV. I went to all the electronic stores with not very success. The "toddlers" who were on the sales room supposed to be helping me understand what my options were to make a decision I was comfortable with were your typical snot faced geek that didn't care a bit.
I was actually shopping in Sears for my wife and walked past their T.V. dept.
I was very surprised. Not only was their selection far superior and pricing very competitive, the sales person actually had a functioning brain.
Needless to say, I bought Sears.
Lots of expensive inventory
This would be all well and good except they both suck. They can't compete with WalMart.
At least ping the guy, so he can get warmed up.
Obviously the majority of folks who've posted here are much more well informed on politics than you are on the market.
1. Kmart is not French-owned. It's publicly traded, and if you want to see who owns the largest shares of their stock, it's pretty easily found out by opening a proxy report and reading it. But since there are those of you who are too lazy to do that, I'll tell you that 53% of the shares are owned by board members.
2. Sears is the 2nd most successful retail organization in the country, behind Walmart. Target is doing quite well also, but Sears has a much better footprint in a lot of areas that Target doesn't exist yet.
This buy-out (it will be Sears buying Kmart, after all) will provide Sears with the opportunity to go head-to-head against Walmart in markets where their current stores just are too small to compete. In addition, it allows the larger Sears stores to not have to play the 'discount' game where they have to have sales every week just to attract customers. This should be a win all around, other than in the boardroom in Troy Michigan (Kmart HQ) where most of those idiots will be canned, appropriately so after they drove Kmart to bankruptcy.
A decent Craftsman tool section might get me into a K-Mart. I haven't been in one in years.
Please direct your comments to the correct poster.
Also blame Bush for the layoffs..
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