Sears closing next year
Sears department store in Wilton Mall expected to close in February
WILTON, N.Y. >> The Sears department store in Wilton Mall is expected to close early next year, along with dozens of others around the country.
After filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last month, Sears Holdings recently released a list of 40 Sears and Kmart stores that will close in February of 2019, as part of the company’s “processes to accelerate its strategic transformation and facilitate its financial restructuring,” a statement on its website said.
Sears Holdings noted that these 40 stores closing is in addition to the previously announced closure of 142 unprofitable stores expected to be completed near the end of the year.
The associates at the local Sears store, along with the 39 others being shut down, were informed on Nov. 8.
Officials said the accompanying Sears Auto Store at Wilton Mall will also be closing.
The local Sears store has operated as an anchor store in Wilton Mall since the mall first opened in 1990.
Looking ahead, Wilton Mall Manager Mike Shaffer believes the site should have no problem filling the current Sears space. “We are actively in discussions with other possibilities,” he said.
“If you think about the Sears location, it’s a very good location within the mall with high visibility to Route 50. If you look historically at what we’ve been able to do here at the Wilton Mall with space out front and getting additional good tenants in, it’s a good location,” Shaffer continued, mentioning stores like HomeGoods, Healthy Living Market and Ulta Beauty on that same side of the mall.
For now, Sears is still open for business. Liquidation sales at these stores will begin late this week, and the store will participate in Black Friday sales as usual next week.
Though it will be the last for Sears at Wilton Mall, “We think it’s going to be a strong holiday season,” Shaffer said. “We expect it to be a good one here at the Wilton Mall.”
Other New York stores on the most recent list of closings include a Kmart in Huntington and another Sears in Watertown. The previous list released last month announced the future closing of Kmart and Sears stores in Schenectady, Mahopac, Batavia, Niagara Falls, West Seneca, Nanuet, Yorktown Heights, Lakewood, and Garden City.
The full lists and company statements can be found online at searsholdings.com/media/company-statement.