What company should Sears be more like?

Sears should be like, well, SEARS (of old). Sears should look at being a leader again, not a follower. Once upon a time there were upstart retailers out there who looked at Sears as their model.

 

Sears has always stood for quality. The prices were competive. I used to buy all my childrens clothes at either Pennys or Sears.  Mostly because of the quality and price. Then I got away from it because other stores were more competive. It was easier to go to walmart than go to the mall and walk through the huge parking lot and maybe not find a handicap parking close. When I went the other day I found parking right close to Sears and went into the mall through Sears. That's when I saw the sale.  I never went to the other store.

 

Sears should aim to be a quality tool retailer, with  great warranty and service- including power tools- rather than the throw away mentality where it is cheaper to replace a power tool than to have it repaired.

Enron...heh Sears pretty much already is Enron.

Eron is a good analogy. In a stock market like this and economic times like this, companies die..GM is dying, banks well you know this, this is now the great cleansing for retailers, companies will go...I don't know if sears can survive and that will mean Kmart will go too. People aren;t shopping there to spend less and right now that could mean the end.

I would like sears to become a leader once again in quality and reasonable prices. As a child we always went to Sears because of the style and durability of its clothing and other merchandise. You could trust the Store to stand behind its product even when there was a lifetime guarentee.

I really like the Sears Essentials store in Rockford, Illinois, however it's 40 miles from where I live and with today's gas prices, I don't get there much. Now I mostly go to K-Mart, and at least am supporting the same company.

I too would like Sears to be like the Sears of old.  A solid leader with good quality products.  I have been distressed the several times I tried to buy clothing for my seven yr. old granddaughter.  There is a large variety for toddler girls but limited choices that were not necessarily age appropriate for a seven year old.  My dad was a Sears executive and I was raised shopping at Sears.  Far too often I now go to Sears and am not able to find what I am needing.

Since you asked. I too think Sears should be like Sears used to be. I always shopped at Sears for everything from all the tools in my shop (both woodworking power tools and mechanics hand tools) to clothing and footwear for my entire family. Because you could always count on getting good quality products. You see I don't mind paying a bit more for good quality USA made products, because I don't buy foreign made products anymore, no matter whose store they are in!!

 Remember they were Sears and Roebuck, My brother found a catalogue I think it was dated in the 1940's.

Sears is a great store, they don't have to change. I've been on my own for over two decades and all my appliances are Kenmore. Never had a problem. As a matter of fact My upright Kenmore freezer just quit on me and I had it over 25 years. I don't buy much tools but I bought the kids craftsmen tools battery operated for my nephews and they are awesome. We had so much fun building and playing.

It would be nice if for long time customers,and Sears knows who you are that they would lower the interest rates on Sears card. Kinda of like a Thank you for sticking around.

Sears is a leader and should continue to be that way.  We are now in the 21st century.  Of course, the "old" Sears used the slogan, "Customer Satisfaction or your Money Back".  This worked for years but Sears was not gaining any profit.  Our customers are not satisfied with our policies and that is understandable.  If you want Sears to be a leader, we have to be able to satisfy our customers within reason.

 I can tell you what I would like to see at Sears stores. Crowds of shoppers. You have got to emulate a model that brings people in to the stores. If half of the Sears store is appliances, tools and electronics and the prices on these items can not be reduced further, then the remainder of the store should be extremely affordable items for families. If you are going to be a general retailer as well as appliance retailer etc., you have got to compete. The retail environment is tough. Profits can be made one penny at a time. The customers need to be drawn in to the store if you want to be considered America's retailer. if you want to have positive name recognition, then you have to offer something that the people want. The people want to be able to shop in your stores and find value. Sears needs to consider the pocket book of their customer base when pricing or offering products outside of appliance and electronics categories (these product categories are already competitive).  Consider how many customers today will actually drive to a Sears store to buy any item that is outside of the big categories mentioned. Sears is not competing in these other areas.  

michelina said…

What are some of your favorite experiences that Sears should try to reproduce? What is it about these experiences that you liked most?  Think in broad terms, not just retailers.

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Thanks for your great feedback on this topic! A lot of folks have great memories from shopping at Sears. 

There are a lot of different types of merchandise sold at Sears and at Kmart. That makes us unique. Assuming prices are very competitive with other retailers, what's most important to you:

• the way products are displayed
• the way salespeople and managers tend to you
• availability of popular items
• good alternatives to out of stock items
• something else?

I went into a Sears store the other day.  We went downstairs to the hardware department, and it was like going into a dungeon- it was dark and uninviting. Sears should be more like Target.  Their ads are fun.  The way the stores are set up is nice.  The merchandise is much nicer at Target than at Sears.  The clothes are much more up to date as well.  The shoe selection at the Sears stores I've gone to leaves MUCH to be desired, as well as the clothing section.  Sears stores, compared to Target, look very outdated.  You need more color in your signs and displays, something to really grab your attention.

 

sears should be more like southwest airlines    take care of your employees and the employees will take care of the customers  and put money back into the store locations,spruce them up         spend money to make money not cut everything

3 years ago I bought all my appliances (at once) from Sears.  Kenmore Elite.  $4000 worth of appliances.  The washing machine pump went out in 13 months.  The Sears repair man said it was like that with this particular washing machine (Calypso) and that the design was poor.  The Sears repair man said this!  It cost me $450.00 to replace the pump.  The repair man said it was a new design for the pump due to the problems.  It had a 90-day warranty on it.  Guess what?  It went out in 120 days.  I called the Sears store where we bought all our appliances and the Manager blew me off.  We went to Lowes and bought a cheap washer with an extended warranty and I had them haul away that Kenmore Elite piece of crap. If Sears doesn't start standing behind their products then they will go out of business.  Word of mouth is a powerful tool and believe me I tell everyone I know to go to Lowes to buy a washer and dryer.  You shouldn't have to spend $400 a year on extended warranties to protect your investment.  Sears should make and stand behind a quality product.  Like it was in the good old days!

I am from Waltham, MA. I feel like Sears is too far away, and I agree with jjschim that it is a pain to have to park and then walk through the mall to get there.

With respect to KMART, is there anyway to get groceries delivered from KMART to Waltham, MA? 

Thats a hard one. Each company has to have their own niche, their own customer base, their own way of doing things. Each company must define what they are going to be and how they are going to operate. Each company must have individuals that believe in the way they run the business as well as understand the business just not from a balance sheet but down to the level of how the wheels turn in a company and even to  a lower level of how do you get the wheel and so on down. One must know their companys soul. What their company is all about.

I have been in retail since 1977 and retail management since 1979 and I have seen that what works for me does not work for the person down the road.

With the retail year ended up tomorrow on the 31st, hopefully stores through their GMs and DMs have already made their goals and plans as well as ways carry out their plans. Not just lip service but real live one on one daily communication with their associates so that all know what is expected of them  and how they are going to acheive the goals.

I'd agree with sprucing up stores. Kmart's are embarassingly outdated (although, in their defense, a handful are being updated), and you don't want to see Sears slip into that condition. Sears is a mid-level brand, and you need the stores to reflect that reality. I'd agree that Target is a good model. They aren't spending a ton of money keeping their stores looking fresh, but it does the trick very well

I think Sears does appliances very well. My experiences have all been good there. Craftsman is a strength, although I suspect the somewhat limited range of goods compared to the other big boxes can hurt it at times. Service can definitely be a differentiator, especially in areas like tools and appliances (where Home Depot and Lowes are a little weak).

Ultimately, unvest a little in the stores, invest in the employees, and it'll become evident to the customers that you do care and Sears has a real future in the retail landscape.

My parents always shopped from Sears catalog.  Christmas was Sears.  Happy employees make for contented customers.  Sears should take a little step back in time by making the customer feel important.  The technology is great but the personal touch has been lost.  Keep displays nice and not overloaded.  The new Land's End section of the mall looks nice.