Lancaster Kmart to close

Kmart will soon shutter its store in Lancaster, S.C., as the retailer and its parent company Sears Holding Corporation continue closing locations and trying to return to their former retail glory.

The Lancaster location isn't on Sears' latest list of store closings, but an employee at the store confirmed its last day of business will be Dec. 16.

Last year, Sears announced that it would close 100 to 120 of its Kmart and mainline Sears locations, due to poor financial performance. Since then, the retail company has sold more locations and created plans to spin off its Sears Outlet and Hometown stores into a separate company.

But the efforts haven't paid off so far. Last month, Sears reported that its sales were still falling, as revenue fell 7 percent, to $9.47 billion, and the company posted a $132 million loss for the quarter. Sales at Kmart stores open at least a year fell 4.7 percent, a steep drop in comp-store sales for the retailer.

(Thanks to the reader who let me know about this store closing.)


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