Sears - RIP - Page 5

CurtEgerer · CurtEgerer's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by rfuerst911sc

Anyone here thinking about buying Sears stock ? Might be a good payoff if they can pull themselves out of the gutter .

I bought Kmart stock when they first started having difficulties 15 years ago or so. Just for fun. It was a roller coaster ride. I bought and sold 4-5 times and made a little bit of money. There'd be a rumor that someone was buying them and it would spike. Then a week later, it would tank when the rumor proved false

Rtrorkt · 10-17-2018, 07:28 AM

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/thanks-sears-musicians-who-gave-us-blues-had-ax-grind-n920921

CurtEgerer · CurtEgerer's Garage

Porsche parts were as close as your local Sears store in the 70s

Mostly VW/914/912/356. but plenty of small 911 parts too.

billybek · billybek's Garage

I remember going to Sears with my dad to pick up a full overhaul kit for my sisters Beetle.
I think it was less than $100 and that kit had everything in it. Was around that time (1976) on the cover of the catalog.
Sears in Canada had closed a while back and I kind of miss it. I have to walk further during the winter months to get into the mall now that the Sears has been shuttered. Actually I do kind of miss going bargain finding in there. No one seemed to know what the heck was going on and sometimes they would apply discounts on discounts. No wonder they were not successful.
When I first started working in my trade, I would frequently go through the tool section and wait for sales. Their tools might not have been Snap On quality but they were decent and long lasting and had that no hassle warranty.

herr_oberst · 10-17-2018, 08:33 PM

I'm going to miss Sears about as much as I miss Weinerschnitzel..

legion · 10-18-2018, 05:41 AM

I already miss what Sears was 20+ years ago. I've been through the five stages of grieving and have reached acceptance.

As far as what Sears is now? It can die for all I care.

legion · 10-18-2018, 05:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WolfeMacleod

Sears is what happens when you take Ayn Rand seriously.

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/column-this-is-what-happens-when-you-take-ayn-rand-seriously?fbclid=IwAR1VfS7Elq2rBbnmXNkHvAyLB7KdQrR-pyu1ZzRgGjtKFe5KmuOdpeOAONY

That's an article written by someone who hasn't actually read the book she is writing about, but is instead writing about what she thinks is in it. The core themes to the book is that people should be compensated for their ideas and that we should pay for use of other's ideas. It also goes quite a bit into how rent seeking (cozying up to government regulators for favorable treatment) destroys competition and hurts everyone. It says nothing about stripping a company bare while neglecting its customers and employees.

cairns · 10-18-2018, 06:53 AM

Only Wolfie would try to politicize this with BS.....

FWIW I think had Sears put their catalog online ten or fifteen years ago they'd be thriving today...

legion · 10-23-2018, 05:13 AM

And for contrast:

How Best Buy survived the retail apocalypse

This part seemed particularly relevant:

Quote:

Unlike Toys 'R' Us or Sears, which were both sunk by the debt foisted on them by massive leveraged buyouts, Best Buy was able to stay nimble. In fact, it's only gotten nimbler. Since 2012, Best Buy has actually cut its debt load in half and increased its cash on hand almost threefold. And while interest payments were gobbling up 4 percent of Toys 'R' Us' revenues before it went under, they only accounted for 0.2 percent of Best Buy's total sales. As rivals were being felled by balance sheets overloaded with debt, Best Buy was cleaning up its own.

CurtEgerer · CurtEgerer's Garage

I haven't been in a Best Buy in 6-7 years. Everything they sell is cheaper and easier to buy on-line from others. Who are their customers?

pavulon · 10-23-2018, 06:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CurtEgerer

I haven't been in a Best Buy in 6-7 years. Everything they sell is cheaper and easier to buy on-line from others. Who are their customers?

impatient, bored, impulsives?

legion · 10-23-2018, 07:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pavulon

impatient, bored, impulsives?

Probably. At least they have a target market. I've ordered one thing from Best Buy in the past 3 years, and it was ordered online. Part of the reason was I wasn't getting good information from Amazon on the kind of thing I was ordering, and wanted to be able to physically inspect the item before accepting it. I also found their prices competitive with Amazon.

Honestly, I find Walmart's online store to be cheaper than Amazon for the same items, I can have it shipped to a local store for free in a day or two, and I can physically inspect the item prior to acceptance.

VINMAN · 10-23-2018, 05:01 PM

I guess I'm one of the rare hold outs that still likes to buy from a store, rather than online. I would much prefer flipping through a paper catalog, than an online one. Society has just gotten lazier and lazier.

Pretty disturbing, seeing people celebrate the demise of one of this country's greatest past institutions. Whether its the fault of their own or not.

.

CurtEgerer · CurtEgerer's Garage

I've tried to order from Walmart a few times and have not had good luck finding what I was looking for. They either didn't offer the item or had a very limited selection. I want to use Walmart but it just hasn't worked for me yet.

Getting back to the topic, Penney's actually had some pretty decent high-performance stuff way back when.

Zeke · 10-24-2018, 08:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VINMAN

I guess I'm one of the rare hold outs that still likes to buy from a store, rather than online. I would much prefer flipping through a paper catalog, than an online one. Society has just gotten lazier and lazier.

Pretty disturbing, seeing people celebrate the demise of one of this country's greatest past institutions. Whether its the fault of their own or not.

.

I still get a few paper catalogs. Mostly woodworking. I think WW is a big business and is popular with the old guys sector. So I suppose the demographics say send out paper.

stevej37 · 12-06-2018, 04:02 AM

Bonuses?

https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/joke-sears-holdings-wants-pay-033000195.html

flatbutt · 12-06-2018, 04:48 AM

I went to Loews to grab some joist hangers yesterday and hardware was loaded with Craftsman tools and tool chests.

BTW my son is still using my Sears Silverstone amp.

ckelly78z · 12-06-2018, 05:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CurtEgerer

I haven't been in a Best Buy in 6-7 years. Everything they sell is cheaper and easier to buy on-line from others. Who are their customers?

Anyone who likes brousing, and evidently has nothing but time, and money on their hands. I NEVER walk into a store just to look around, and hope something catches my eye.

fred cook · fred cook's Garage

Back in the 1930s, my father worked for Sears in Greensboro, NC designing mail order heating systems for homes. He said that the demand for systems was great and that they never got caught up! Those were the days!

legion · 01-08-2019, 07:47 AM

It is done.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-sears-bankruptcy-liquidation-exclusiv/exclusive-sears-to-ask-bankruptcy-judge-to-liquidate-sources-idUSKCN1P218J

Quote:

Sears Holdings Corp will ask a bankruptcy judge on Tuesday if it can proceed with liquidation after it could not reach an agreement on Chairman Edward Lampert’s $4.4 billion takeover bid, casting doubt on the survival of the 126-year-old U.S. department store chain, people familiar with the matter said.