They are closing the last Sears in town...

[Harry O]

and possibly the last one in the State. I went to that Sears a lot in the late 1950's thru the 1960's. They had a lot of guns and ammunition for sale. I don't think I ever bought any guns there, but I bought plenty of .22LR ammunition, mostly one box at a time (that was all I could afford). However, my mother bought most of my clothes there (particularly pants).

I vividly remember that they had a shooting demonstration INSIDE the building one time. I don't remember the guy's name, but he was shooting a Marlin Mountie with .22 Shorts. His specialty was shooting aspirin tablets in various positions at various distances. He would shoot and they would just disappear. I later tried it myself, but ended up shooting NECCO wafers. They were big enough for me to hit regularly. He also shot balloons and shot backwards with a mirror. There was nothing between the audience and the shooter other than a velvet rope. I could imagine someone trying that today.

Anyway, it was not very long after that that Sears dropped guns and not too long afterward, ammunition. I stopped going to the place not too long after that. I don't think I have been back in that store for at least 45-50 years.

[Conditor22]

Sears / Kmart was doing well until a new owner bought them as a tax write-off.
The only time I go to sears is to replace a broken craftsman tool

[Freightman]

They are closing the one here also, Sears use to be the place to go but the last 10 years they are plain sorry. Feel sorry for the ones that they cheated out of there retirement.

[CastingFool]

Our local Sears is closing up, too. I haven't bothered to go look for deals. Hate to see them go, most of my hand tools are Craftsman. I started buying them while I was in high school, 50 yrs ago.

[Der Gebirgsjager]

There was a news article about it on Fox News website a couple of days ago. It's complicated. Apparently there's a guy who heads up a hedge fund which loaned lots of money to Sears a couple of years ago when they first faced financial difficulties. They continued to fail and now are looking at liquidation. The hedge fund manager had until close of business Friday 28th to either buy and take it over or it's supposed to be curtains, and result in the closing of over 200 Sears and K-Mart stores.

Sad to see such retail institutions pass, and like Harry O, I remember my mom buying my school clothes there. Back in the late '70s the one nearest to where I was living at the time went out of the gun business. By the time I found out about it all the guns were gone, but I picked up about 20 boxes each of .30-30 and .30-06 ammo, some of which I still have to this day. So, although it's sad to see them depart the scene, keep your eyes open for bargains as it's probably going to be "Everything Must Go!"

[mold maker]

I grew up wearing Sears jeans washed and dried in Kenmore. Mom cooked on Kenmore stove with food from a Sears fridg. I made a living using Craftsman and played with their sports equipment. My yard was kept neat with Craftsman. I'm glad I outlasted Sears, and I hope the brands I trusted for my whole life out last me.
Although in recent years they were more a convenient path from the parking deck to the mall, I'm gonna miss them.
BTW My Dad saved 37 Sears catalogs, many with X and circles in the toy sections. There's a lifetime of memories wrapped around Sears.

[Der Gebirgsjager]

My washer and dryer are still Kenmore -- made by Whirlpool!

[WILCO]

Haven't been to sears in years.
They closed the store here months ago.
Life goes on. I like Walmart, when I need something.

[rancher1913]

too bad they did not return to their roots as a mail order company, might not be a amazon now if they had.

[higgins]

The same Marlin exhibition shooter came to my Jr. High school (I'm 69), believe it or not. He was Colonel something; don't remember his last name.

It just came to me - his name was Colonel Larson.

[Texas by God]

Their annual catalog was truly the Wish Book when I was little.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

[Handloader109]

Truly amazing how such a large Corp can ruin their business. Totally ignored internet.

Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk

[Winger Ed.]

Hate to see them go. They almost invented the concept of mail order.
I never understood why they abandoned it, and also missed the chance to 'invent' shopping on the internet.

[shaper]

Sears started going down when they stopped sending the catalogs. I bought my Winchester 94 from them about 1975, on the barrel it has Sears Winchester 94. It also is a little shorter and not as heavy. It is still my favorite rifle for deer hunting. Guess I will be handing it down to one of the grand kids one day.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

They are closing the Sears store in MOA (Mall of America) in Minneapolis (actually it's in a suburb south to Minneapolis)...surprising since it is a Anchor store.

[Pressman]

The Sears in Des Moines is also an anchor store to Merle Hay mall and closing. I always liked there tools and appliances.

Who was Merle Hay? Google the name for a great history lesson, with a sad ending.

[mac60]

They closed the store in Mobile, Al. a good while back. I see Craftsman tools in Lowe's now. Like TbG I well remember the Sears catalog. Also, I remember a barrel full of old military guns muzzle down in a barrel. This would have been in the mid to late '60's.

[MUSTANG]

Another American Iconic Business Killed off by Wall Street, Harvard MBA, Global Banker Types. Todays objective in business is to Hype a Business to get the Stock up; Take lots of Stocks/Options as compensation; Dump the Stock when you have manipulated it to an unrealistic price and leave the Investment Sucker s holding the bag, then sell off the Real Estate and Assets as it slides down so you can milk the last bit of Largess from the coffers; then disappear and let the pundits pick the bones of a Great Iconic American Business. General Electric (GE) is the next to go; and it was subverted by the Obaminites, Renewable Energy, Fed's Subsidies, and other tools of the Wall Street/Harvard MBA types.

[Kraschenbirn]

Closed our Sears retail store 8 or 9 years ago but kept a mail-order outlet in one of the smaller malls. Looks like that's gone, too.

Next door neighbor was a shop manager for Sears Automotive. He'd been there something like 26 years and when they closed the retail, they gave him the choice of relocating to one to the Chicago locations...as a "lead technician"...or taking a buy-out of his pension/profit sharing. Took the cash and 'early retirement'...building racing engines and overhauling Harleys in his garage as a 'hobby'.

Bill

[smoked turkey]

Sad to see it. I used to make the short journey from my workplace on many "noon hours" to just browse the tool and lawn equipment section. I ended up buying lots of sale items that I didn't know I needed until I saw the sale price. I have a lawn tractor that was my last big purchase. I purchased one of their smaller tool sets about 55 years ago when I started driving. I use those same wrenches, sockets, etc to this day. I have added lots to it over the years and have them in one of their big roll-a-round tool chests. My wood working shop is well equipped with many of their big stationary tools. I am pretty sure that many folks on here have similar stories of their "craftsman" tools used through the years. Sad as I said in my opening to this trip down memory lane.

[salpal48]

It is unfortunate that Sears and many other Old names are going down the tubes. All the blame is basically On the backs of the American people who left Them and Other's for Cheap products made it china and Other Ungodly countries You don't want to Visit. they were to late and to late to Jump on the band wagon for cheap and disposable stuff.
The American Got what they wanted Cheap goods @ all Costs. Sears and Others were packed with American made products. Most Americans Rejected them for Cheap Junk.
Now, the American workers are suffering with No work. They wanted Cheap Goods , They got It, now they have no good jobs to pay for them. Be careful what you wish for.

[Mohawk Daddy]

Another American Iconic Business Killed off by Wall Street, Harvard MBA, Global Banker Types. Todays objective in business is to Hype a Business to get the Stock up; Take lots of Stocks/Options as compensation; Dump the Stock when you have manipulated it to an unrealistic price and leave the Investment Sucker s holding the bag, then sell off the Real Estate and Assets as it slides down so you can milk the last bit of Largess from the coffers; then disappear and let the pundits pick the bones of a Great Iconic American Business. General Electric (GE) is the next to go; and it was subverted by the Obaminites, Renewable Energy, Fed's Subsidies, and other tools of the Wall Street/Harvard MBA types.

Good analysis. I believe this is what is known as vulture capitalism. A variation is to borrow as much money as possible, go broke, file bankruptcy and leave the lenders, the stockholders, and the employees with little or nothing. Old time businessmen wouldn't have dreamed of operating in this fashion.

[Harry O]

This thread has shook loose some memories:

"Who was Merle Hay?" I used to go by that intersection (with I-80) every few months whenever I went to or from college. A few years later I heard the name on a History special on TV. That was long before the Internet -- or the History Channel. First US soldier to die in WWI. I am sure there are a lot of other details that I don't know.

My mother shopped for my grade school (and somewhat later) clothes from Sears since they were heavier duty than the clothes sold at Penney's. Lasting longer meant something back then.

I have been to many Sears stores in the last 45-50 years, just not that one. After I left my parents home for college, there was always a different store closer to me. When I got out of college and got a job, I used to go to their store almost every Sunday. They had tool sales on Sunday. I no longer had ready access to my fathers tools. I put away a little money from each paycheck earmarked for tools, then checked the ads in the Sunday paper and decided what to buy that week. It did not matter if I did not have an immediate need for it. If it was a useful tool and I did not have one, I bought it. In a few years, I had a great collection of tools. Great times. After I got a full selection of hand tools, there was nothing left at Sears for me.

My parents never bought appliances from them since they had a discount through an uncle for a competing brand.

[salpal48]

This thread has shook loose some memories:

"Who was Merle Hay?" I used to go by that intersection (with I-80) every few months whenever I went to or from college. A few years later I heard the name on a History special on TV. That was long before the Internet -- or the History Channel. First US soldier to die in WWI. I am sure there are a lot of other details that I don't know.

My mother shopped for my grade school (and somewhat later) clothes from Sears since they were heavier duty than the clothes sold at Penney's. Lasting longer meant something back then.

I have been to many Sears stores in the last 45-50 years, just not that one. After I left my parents home for college, there was always a different store closer to me. When I got out of college and got a job, I used to go to their store almost every Sunday. They had tool sales on Sunday. I no longer had ready access to my fathers tools. I put away a little money from each paycheck earmarked for tools, then checked the ads in the Sunday paper and decided what to buy that week. It did not matter if I did not have an immediate need for it. If it was a useful tool and I did not have one, I bought it. In a few years, I had a great collection of tools. Great times. After I got a full selection of hand tools, there was nothing left at Sears for me.

My parents never bought appliances from them since they had a discount through an uncle for a competing brand.
Sunday papers, Nobody knows what they are anymore, never mind Read newspapers

[Echo]

Two Craftsman tool kits in my storeroom, Kenmore washer & dryer, Coolspot reefer, and God Knows what else...

[Hickory]

They say that big fish eat the little fish, but when the big fish gets old, it dies.

[snowwolfe]

In retail, you change with the times or you die. Sears would not change with the times and reaped the rewards.

[Kimber1911]

They closed all of them around here in central NY

[dale2242]

I have a lot of Craftsman wood working tools in my shop.
They are middle of the road quality and price.
Their outdoor gas powered equipment has become total *** in my opinion.
My string trimmer and leaf blowers are junk in my opinion.
They both seem to have carburetor issues.
You can`t even adjust them without breaking the seals on the adjustment screws.
I have went to Stihl equipment.
It is more expensive but of MUCH better quality.
It is a sad thing but, I am not sorry to see them go.
I agree that the Sears catalog was the "Wish Book" of my youth...dale

[Walks]

SEARS started as a mail order outfit.
Didn't start building stores until the 1920's. Catalog business was stopped in the 1990's. Catalog had 1550 pages in 1993.
In 2005 a man named Edward Lambert bought a majority share of Sears. He already owned K-Mart. He then started cutting employee hours, any benefits left disappeared. He closed stores, sold off the Great Sears Name Brands; Kenmore & Craftsman.
Cut the wages of new hires to minimum wage.
Slashed services in the Auto Center, took away all future Lifetime Warranties.

Down 2300 stores in 2005 to just about 500 now.

And he just announced a 4.5 billion dollars bailout.

In 2005 Amazon was a blip on the radar.

There were upper mgmt people at Sears that wanted to start an online purchase/delivery system.
Lambert stopped it.

Broadway, May Co. Montgomery Ward, J. Magnin, I. Magnin, Gemco. And I don't know how many eastern stores are gone.

Wal-Mart did that. Sam Walton would take a good well made American product over to the chinese.
Say make this cheaper, doesn't have to be as good, just look ok.

By the time Sears caught on to that, Wal-Mart was racing West, destroyed small towns in it's wake.

SEARS, probably the greatest Dept Store in History.

Killed by the Greed of 2 men.

[richhodg66]

I just had to go to N.C. to take care of some stuff and while there, took a walk through a mall in Jacksonville. One, the mall seemed in good shape which is rare anymore, didn't notice any empty stores and lots of people shopping. Two, the big Sears there seemed to be doing well too and even still had the automotive section, the few Sears stores I've seen lately anywhere else were dying (they've closed all the ones around here and the last K-Mart I know of in Salina is closing now). I hate seeing them go, but it seems inevitable now.

[abunaitoo]

I grew up with Sears.
From the Christmas catalogs, to the tool catalogs.
Got my Cub Scouts uniform from them.
Almost all my cloths during grade school was from Sears.
Work cloths were from Sears.
Still use most of my original Craftsman tools.
I remember in the 60's, during Christmas, sears was packed with people.
Toy department was huge.
Sporting goods department had almost any equipment for any sports.
Got my first bicycle from Sears.
I still go to Sears to buy stuff.
Mostly tools.
Seems they don't really have much of anything else these days.
Very sad.

[Remmy4477]

Sad! Grew up going to sears, monkey wards, Kmart, woolsworth, gibsons and a few others.

Sears, craftsman tools
Montgomery wards, had the best bargain basement sales.
Kmart, remember there deli section, the best hoggies in town.
Woolsworth, best lunch menu.
Gibsons, lots of ammo and sporting goods.

Sure miss those stores, growing up right before christmas the sears and wards catologs were big hits with us kids.

Days by gone, but we lived it! Memories!

[shooterg]

When they started replacing USA made Craftsman tools with China made, I cut up the Sears card I'd had since 1971. Got thousands of $$ in the old Craftsman tools. Granddad even had a manure spreader and a David Bradley hammer mill we used on the farm, mail ordered from Sears, along with a cream separator, sausage grinder and a good deal more. My Dad's Springfield 15Y .22 and the traps he ran , same . My first .22 was a Sears(actually a Marlin 80) with the later addition of a Ted Williams 4X scope, still kills squirrels just fine.
Had Kenmore appliances, not many, as they all lasted for many years. It's a shame.

[sawinredneck]

I was a member of the “Craftsman club” for the longest time, they perturbed me when they killed that program! I hadn’t been in for a while but needed to replace some missing sockets so I went in a couple of weeks ago. What a disgusting joke! Bare shelves, maybe five toolboxes and half the store full of mattresses! I was told it will be closing now, last store in Wichita.

[jonp]

Sears / Kmart was doing well until a new owner bought them as a tax write-off.
The only time I go to sears is to replace a broken craftsman tool

No they were not. Sears has been a sinking ship for years. They had a run with a bad CEO but the new one has kept them afloat longer than I thought he could. Selling off product lines, closing stores and selling real estate has kept them going. The problem is every business like that is struggling in the age of the internet. Big box stores being anchors are dieing along with the mall concept.

[jonp]

It is unfortunate that Sears and many other Old names are going down the tubes. All the blame is basically On the backs of the American people who left Them and Other's for Cheap products made it china and Other Ungodly countries You don't want to Visit. they were to late and to late to Jump on the band wagon for cheap and disposable stuff.
The American Got what they wanted Cheap goods @ all Costs. Sears and Others were packed with American made products. Most Americans Rejected them for Cheap Junk.
Now, the American workers are suffering with No work. They wanted Cheap Goods , They got It, now they have no good jobs to pay for them. Be careful what you wish for.

Closer to the mark than some of the analysis I've seen in this thread.

I grew up like many. Sears mail order was one of the main ways to shop in our small town. I remember the excitement when the Sears Christmas Catalog showed up and going through the pages circling all of the toys I knew I wouldn't get in a million years. I still have a Made In USA Socket Set from them I bought almost 20yrs ago and can't believe I've only lost one socket from it.

Sears, JC Penny, Montgomery Ward and stores like them just can not find a business model that works in a changing society where you can get anything you want with a click of the button delivered to your door and the ability to hop in a car and drive 50 miles (for most of America) and go shopping. The world changes and the retail environment does too.

[Elkins45]

When I landed a brief white collar job with a big corporation, Sears was the place I went to buy a week’s worth of “grown up” clothes. This was in the early 80s.

I own an awful lot of stuff that says Craftsman or Kenmore on it. I thought I had really hit the big time when I replaced my no-name hand tools with Craftsman. I still have my copy of the last big Wish Book they published. My dad thought Sears and Montgomery Ward were great American institutions and there’s still a Wards branded tiller out in the barn somewhere that would probably fire right up if I needed it.

Mitt Romney took a lot of grief for saying that corporations are people, but in this case it’s sadly too accurate. You watch them grow up, get old and then get feeble and die. Watching Sears go downhill has been like watching a grandparent in decline. By the time the end comes they are barely a shell of what they were when they were young and vital.

They sold the Craftsman name and now you can find them in Lowe’s and Ace Hardware. So at least if I ever break any of my American made tools I can trade them for Chinese made tools. :sad:

[GregLaROCHE]

I started boating with my father and his old Sears Water Witch outboard engine. Later in life I bought a five horse outboard from them in the early seventies. It served me well. My toolbox used to be filled with craftsman tools.

[slim1836]

Stopped at Lowes yesterday and they had Craftsmen tool boxes for sale.

Slim

[Thundarstick]

Good riddance! Sears burned me in the early 80s when I found it nearly impossible to get parts for any IC engine on any Sears product. I swore off any product with an IC engine, Craftsman tools where OK, but lots of better ones to be had. The last wager I bought from them was Kenmore/ LG- made in Korea! The stores where only a front to display items, then you had to wait for an order to come in! I needed an air compressor, went to Sears, I'll take that one, O, it will be in in two days. I gave the manager a piece of my mind, told him Amazon was quicker, then went to Tractor Supply and bought the same one on the spot!
They can't shutter the last ones quick enough, if you ask me!

[sparkyv]

Sears? What's a Sears?

[JBinMN]

I find it sad.

Those who have been so taken with internet sales may end up regretting the loss of stores, both "Ma & Pa" types as well as the bigger name stores like Sears some day.

I live in a small rural town and like to try to shop & help support the local small businesses. Many times though, it is , "We don't have that in stock, ( or "we don't carry it in the store") , but we can certainly order it for you & likely have it here for you next week.". Leaving me with the thinking that I can likely order it & have it here next week on my own. Sometimes though, in the spirit of that support I mentioned, have them order it anyway if it is not too "out of hand" for cost. It depends on the amount they charge usually as compared to my going on a trip to a larger town( time & fuel, etc.), easier/less expensive to just do it myself, or not.

Alas, those larger stores ( & "brick and mortar" stores) are disappearing and it is harder to find one close enough. Let alone the fun that can be had going to on a trip to look things over before buying ( shopping around), or taking youngsters to actually see what something is that is for sale, rather than looking at a computer screen & then, once the item arrives, if it is purchased & it is not what you expected, like seeing it first hand in a store and "know" what you will be buying is what you wanted...

I have more I could say on the demise of Sears & other "old school" type businesses, but I would be "preaching to the choir". ("Drive in" theaters come to mind around here, BTW.)

I also have fond memories of catalog wishing & shopping from the time of my youth until a short time back.
I even remember the use of the torn out pages of old catalogs in the outhouse on occasion, back in those times, although telephone books were a bit easier on a person for that sort of use, if one did not have store bought TP, of course. Better than some other things I can think of, for the same use that has been used on occasion. ;)

Anyway, for me , my missus. & others I know, it is truly sad to see them go... Sometimes, change is not always "for the better"... Can't tell that to those who will never know, though... Truly sad to me...

[mattw]

They closed our Sears in Champaign years ago, really miss the tool section. When I was a kid the catalog was a huge wish list, then when I got older and could not afford SnapOn tools, they were my wish list again. Not sure why they never went back to their roots of mail order business, I think if they had embraced the internet earlier they would still be around. Went to the closing in Terre Haute last week and picked up a display table, built like a tank! May just about finish off the Honey Creek mall as it was the largest anchor store there. But, it is time for malls to go... they charge so much for front line space and back space that prices have to be inflated to the point that I don't hardly ever buy anything.

Back to the table... already have it full! It is made from 1.5" square tube!

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7878/45650151535_232c1f8c84.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/2cxWXCc)table (https://flic.kr/p/2cxWXCc) by Matt Ward (https://www.flickr.com/photos/98509702@N05/), on Flickr

[Hogtamer]

They quit publishing their catalog avout the same time Amazon came on the scene. With forward thinking management Sears could have been king of on line retailers. They snoozed and Amazon forged ahead to transform the industry.

[blackthorn]

Sears closed here in Kamloops last year. For several years prior selection deteriorated and service became almost non-existent. You could buy a vacuum cleaner but when you needed a new part you were told to contact the manufacturer. This after I drove for 25 minutes to "shop local". After several such experiences, I quit driving and started surfing! Get what I want, it is delivered to my door, and is usually cheaper.

[Thin Man]

At age 21 I bought a Craftsman tool kit and box from Sears for $77, the most of my tax refund for that year. Even though they occasionally offered this same kit on sale for $44 I was happy to finally have a fairly complete kit for small repairs. I was drawn to these tools by the free lifetime replacement guarantee they offered, which I used frequently.

At age 24 I went to Sears to get a replacement for a broken ignition wrench from the kit named above. The open end of one of these odd sized wrenches was perfect to fit the lock nut on my Jeep's clutch cable, also it was small enough to reach into the very tight space to make that adjustment The wrench failed and I desperately needed a replacement. The clerk looked at the wrench and claimed they did not sell or offer single wrenches, and took the issue to the store manager. After about 10 minutes the clerk handed me a check for about $1.14 as their replacement for the wrench. That was the equivalent of the ignition wrench kit's price, divided by the number of wrenches in the kit, to determine the value of one wrench. I explained that I could not move the clutch cable nut with a piece of paper and needed the wrench. They refused to offer anything more. In hindsight I should have brought them the entire wrench kit, told them all of these needed replacement and traded for a complete kit but that opportunity passed by me.

Later came the Craftsman chain saw I bought used. It soon developed carburetor issues and none of the local saw or mechanical shops could make the adjustments it required. That was when I learned Sears bought these saws from a manufacturer who built them to Sears specifications. This meant the carbs (and other parts) required special tools to make corrections, thus the customer had to return to Sears for service on the tools. I quickly discarded that saw and never bought another Sears power tool.

As I got older it seemed that every time I bought anything from their store I got hammered by their clerks to sign up for their credit card, or to buy an extended warranty, or other similar pressure sales. One time I was in a hurry to get back to a project but the cashier kept coming up with more "offers." I stopped her pitches by claiming that if she could not complete the sale immediately I would leave their store without making that one simple purchase, would find what I needed somewhere else. That got her busy with the cash register. As time passed and I found other vendors for what I needed I all but forgot about Sears. Not going to miss them.

[BigAlofPa.]

Our one sears in Frackville pa closed. The K mart did too in the same mall. Today the mall is no more. They tore it down and put a warehouse in. One of the last stores to hold out at the mall was a Dunham's Sports. They closed shortly after Christmas of 2017.

[Iowa Fox]

The Sears in Des Moines is also an anchor store to Merle Hay mall and closing. I always liked there tools and appliances.

Who was Merle Hay? Google the name for a great history lesson, with a sad ending.

That as a good history lesson pressman. I did not know that.

[Walkingwolf]

My dad predicted 50 years ago their demise when they stopped being a farmers store, and turned into a hip store moving into malls.

[troyboy]

I've done more then my share to keep Sears in business. Made it a point to buy, Kenmore appliances,Craftsman lawn and garden, and of course hand tools.This has been coming for a long time. My America is heading towards the same fate.......

[Maineboy]

When I was a kid, mom bought just about every stitch of the family's clothes through mail order, mostly from Sears. She always ordered shirts, pants, and jackets for us kids one size bigger than we needed and we wore them until they were one size too small. My brothers, sister, and I fought over the Christmas Wish Book and we marked each toy we wanted with our name. I believe most of those gifts from Santa came from Sears, but delivered to my grandmothers house. My first gun was a "Sears" .410 bolt action shotgun with a detachable 3 shot magazine, that I bought with money I earned picking potatoes and it came in the mail. That was one of the longest waits of my life. When my wife and I were first married, we bought many of our appliances at Sears retail stores and many of my tools are Craftsman. As years went by, we shopped less and less at Sears and their last retail store in our area closed several years ago. Now we shop online for clothes and Christmas gifts and they get delivered a lot quicker than when mom ordered stuff by mail.

[lightman]

Its truly sad to see. I have a shop full of Craftsman tools, from back when they were made in the USA. We also used Sears appliances when we built our house in 1992, some of which are still working. I played ball with Sears sports equipment, hunted with Sears hunting gear, kept a yard up with Sears equipment, ect ect! A lot of these old landmark businesses are closing. My Wife exchanged a Christmas gift at Dillards yesterday and this huge store was nearly vacant. I doubt it will be here much longer. Kmart is a thing of the past. So many more. I don't hate Walmart but I do wish they would disconnect from China, at least a little bit.

[jonp]

Stopped at Lowes yesterday and they had Craftsmen tool boxes for sale.

Slim

Selling off the Craftsman name was one of the things that was done to generate cash and try to stave off bankruptcy. I noticed Lowes starting to carry Craftsman. Hard to miss all of that red. It seemed to me that they were replacing the Kobalt tools with Craftsman.

I had thought all Craftsman tools were made in China now although they still have a lifetime warranty. The tape measure I got on sale yesterday says "Made In America with global parts" so at least it's assembled here. The handsaws were made in Denmark for some reason.

[Winger Ed.]

I hate to see them go. It seems they didn't miss several opportunities over the years, I think they threw them away.

I've been carrying a 3/8 ratchet handle that skipped when ya bore down on it in the truck for about 5 years.
I heard they were closing and finally traded it in. Went to town yesterday, and their building has a 'for lease' sign in the window.

[wgr]

I have one of their catalogs were you could still buy exploves

[mold maker]

They once sold houses in kit form.

[Winger Ed.]

They once sold houses in kit form.
I'd forgotten about that. At Pres. Nixon's funeral it was mentioned that his father had built their house from a Sear's kit.
I'd heard they also sold kits to assemble your own horse drawn wagon too.

[Bad Water Bill]

When I started at Sears there was a dress code.

The last time I visited a Sears you could not tell an employee from a panhandler standing on the street corner.

When the old timers retired from the board of directors the bean counters took over and RADICAL changes happened instantly.

Store managers were directed to FIRE all personelle with less than 5 years service.

My store manager refused and was instantly fired after 40 years of service.

I could go on and on about how the new folks ruined a once great company,now all I can do is trash my discount card.:-(

[crankycalico]

Sears changed with the times. They were THE name for outfitting a camping expedition or a wagon train west in the 1800s. Once the "strip mall" happened in the 1950s they gave up being the one stop shopping experience to become trendy for the fashionable crowd.

[abunaitoo]

Sad to see a store I've grown up with, go down the tubes.
I still remember when they had the biggest toy department of any other store.
Then as I got older, they had the biggest sporting goods department of any store here.
Got my first bike, baseball glove, skateboard, fishing pole, tent, camping equipment from them.
Built a bike from parts bought from them.
Got lots of ammo, and one rifle from them,
Later when I stated buying tools, they had the best stocked tool and machine department of any store here.
Lawnmower, pressure washer, weed eater, pole saw, chain saw, and garden tools almost all bought from Sears.
We bought all of our appliances from them, and had any repairs done by them.
Washer and dryer still going strong to this day. They must be over 30 years old now.
TV, microwave, stereo, radio, A/C, fans all from them.
They were the go to place for clothes, records, watches, shoes.
They started going down when the catalog sales ended.
I always thought that was a big mistake.
Look at catalog and internet sale today.
They really started going down when kmart joined up.
Today it's just a hollow shell of what it once was.
Very sad.

[Sig556r]

Sears / Kmart was doing well until a new owner bought them as a tax write-off.
The only time I go to sears is to replace a broken craftsman tool

Even the craftsman brand is delegated to Lowe's