Remember when you could order whatever you wanted from Sears, and they’d deliver it? They were the Amazon of the 20th century. What happened? Couldn’t‘ve all been due to a leverage buyout and vulture capitalism.
I remember when Sears sold popcorn. As soon as I smelled it, I knew we were getting close to Sears at the mall. My mom said they had a candy counter at one time as well.
This video breaks my heart. I remember in elementary school. we would be impatiently waiting for the Sears Christmas catalog. And Sears had a lot of stuff that you couldn’t get anywhere else. Today there is no Kenmore. They don’t have craftsman tools. They just might as well be any generic big box store. It’s so sad.
Thank the brainiac in charge that said “we no longer need this wishbook” back in 1993 instead of thriving it on the internet. I miss the old quality of Sears Kenmore, Sears Craftsman, Sears Diehard, Free Spirit. Sears stood by their name! Now it’s just a memory. My best suits were all from Sears!
...., M.Wards, Younker's ( Des Moines, Iowa. ..Elder Beerman Stores : Sterling, IL and Carbondale, IL 2010), K's Mech-----(Midwest)....Venture, Kmart....
Easy to say "just move it to the web". The problem at Sears and other organizations going through major market changes are the people that you have working there are not the people that can "move it to the web". The old guard gradually goes down with the ship running the business that they know how to run.
For ( pre ) Christmas 1971… Mom ordered thru Sears Christmas catalog, for my little brother and me Small plastic NFL helmets complete with decal sheet And goalposts display stands. We each got one, along with a new belt with an NFL team Logo buckle, me the Miami Dolphins, bro the Dallas Cow- boys. That snowy December 12/25 morning, we were careful placing the correct NFL labels on the correct color helmets. SIGH! the GOOD OL’DAYS! CB
I sold tools at SEARS back in the mid 1990's. That place was hopping at Christmas time. So sad to see. They'd have the Christmas shop up and fully operational at the end of August each year. I wonder if they still push the "Maintenance Agreement" on their tools, plumbing, and appliances. I hated trying to sell those things. Total rip-off.
Sears was the place to go back in the day when they had quality suppliers supplying them with products. Many of the main tool suppliers were supplying Craftsman tools and they were made in the USA. Many of their appliances were supplied by Whirlpool, Frigidaire and other major manufacturers and parts were always readily available through many sources. As many mentioned Sears went wrong when they failed to adapt to their customer base and embrace online shopping. They had the elements to get it right but they just never executed it properly. Adding to that a CEO who was nothing more than a corporate raider and did not have the corporation's best interest in mind meant a slow sink to the bottom.
When I was a kid Sears Canada was an amazing store. Bustling with people at Christmas. Huge Toy Land. Lots of quality clothes, tools, furniture, etc. This video reminds me of when Sears started to die but this looks even worse.
It was nice to see that some stores survived, but so sad to see how short sighted management was in the way these stores were run. It’s like they’re circling the drain now.
I remember Sears used to be jam packed with inventory. This video shows they nolonger use the valuable wall space to display their clothing. All the walls are bare. Sears also used to be packed with shoppers. Looks like Eddie Lambert has killed Sears. There have also been no new store openings in the thriving retail malls that still do exist across the United States America. As for the 11 store locations throughout the United States those locations are also listed as being available on Transformco's website. If a buyer comes forward those locations will also close. Sears is in trouble.
Sears Canada was also killed as well. What was the rationale for Sears Canada shutting down entirely at once in January 2018? The vast majority of Sears in America also closed with no buyer of the property as well. Just like that, the last stores could also close and since sit abandoned... even before a buyer comes forward. Because unprofitable stores also close. Sears opened small format stores in 2016, 2017 and 2019. All of them closed at once in June 2023, some / the majority of which with no buyer coming forward. As for Bed Bath and Beyond... It was recently announced that they would be once again opening stores in 2025
Rue21 was closing up shop this year but suddenly they just found a buyer of the brand name and intellectual property. And now that buyer, which is a Canadian company, is reopening stores and relaunching online website
@PacificNorthwestExploratio-k9j It was a mix of things. Eddie closed the distro center which meant no product going up to Canada. Then the properties that closed in the US was a mix of things including the first bankruptcy, property owners buying back the land from Sears, and Sears closing locations too far from open distribution centers. Pretty sure the online website only used Long Island anyways as their warehouse so there's a lot of reasons.
@@Shinycelebi Before the Sears and Kmart merger Kmart also had a seperate bankruptcy filing. Eddie also stepped in and invested in Kmart at the time so they could emerge from bankruptcy. He ended up with 54 percent ownership of Kmart before the merger even took place. Also at the time Sears while it was still a seperate corporation before the merger was noted as one of the most cash rich corporations in The United States. Sears also had just sold it's credit business to Citibank. The stockholders of both Sears and Kmart voted by proxy in two seperate elections in favor of merging the two retailers. This was how fast Eddie got his hands on Sears. After the merger Kmart's poor management stepped in and started to manage Sears. It was all down hill for Sears after that. The declines started and did not stop.
The people who bought Sears basically just drained all the life out of the store... Or rather, all of the money. That's all they were interested in - not reinventing Sears in any way, just reading the cash out of the company.
Back in the '90s I purchased a piece of luggage in Florida and went over to Maui Hawaii. Something happened with that luggage and I went to a Sears in Honolulu. Because it was from Florida they wouldn't do anything for me. I ended up buying another piece of luggage. I still like Sears. They were my first charge card I had many years ago.
Where are the employees? Many years ago I went to Sears to shop for a suit. The employee who helped me was great and experienced. He suggested a few different suits, pulled out some shirts and ties, and fitted the suit I picked out. Then walked me over to the shoe department and pointed out some shoes that would look great with my new suit. I returned a few days later to pick up my suit and the employee came out with it and happy that I had returned while he was on shift. That was called service. Someone in the corporation made the decision to get rid of experienced employees. Don't blame Amazon. They just filled a void.
@dchawk81 You missed the point. Because the company is closing stores and is unstable, nobody really wants to work for a place that is unstable. You're basically making it harder to find work if you let more stable jobs go by. I knew people who jumped ship and found better and rightfully so because their stores all closed eventually. The store may be open but in 2025, it's already way past time it's gone since Eddie isn't trying to exactly fix the company.
I remember going to Sears when I was a kid, not too long ago for back to school shopping. I had 4 stores in a 30mins drive. Now only this one that’s is a hour away.
Nah not really. If that was the case, Target or Walmart would be suffering too. According to my research, Sears just failed to cater to their consumer base, starting with the color scheme of this store shown in the video. While it’s easy to put the blame on Amazon, there are other reasons or factors to consider.
Nah not really. If that was the case, Target or Walmart would be suffering too. According to my research, Sears just failed to cater to their consumer base, starting with the color scheme of this store shown in the video. While it’s easy to put the blame on Amazon, there are other reasons or factors to consider.
@@fastcombo33the two places you named have groceries as well which is a pretty big difference seeing as grocery shopping is one of the last things starting to catch on with online shopping, although even that is changing now. So as online shopping gets easier there will be less demand for a variety of stores. The ones that offer the most will be the last to go. They are probably safe for a long while as all the remaining in person shopping is being filtered there at this point. Finally, let's just be honest, these ppl in the comments might have nostalgia but they're also likely not shopping there, either. If you are computer literate enough to be commenting on youtube videos you are very likely part of the demographic who has begun heavily shopping online.
I use to work for Sears eons ago during the 80s in the back then... "Sears Tower" in the IT dept. as an (Assembler programmer using those green screens, tiny little pagers , and green bar paper, and the vaunted IBM Yellow card. Thankfully I just missed the Punch card days... had to deal with those in College.) , on the 48th floor. Had to always take 2 escalators to get there. Use to work in Catalog/ Liquidations dept. The view from there was magnificent. But prior to that I always remembered the Sears Department store on 79th street near the Chicago Skyway. They had a Christmas toy display that was magical. Toy trains running and Slot cars / Hot wheels / Matchbox cars running around on tracks. Catalog shutdown in 1990, so I had to move on to other companies in Chicago. But for 4 years from 1986 to 1990, was a blast to work in the Sears Tower.
The Hawaiian shirts I found funny. Not that popular here in New England during the winter. Maybe when we go on vacation, when we are tired of the cold.
20 years ago the fear was that the spread of Walmart that was going to spell the doom of traditional merchandising , when all along the actual enemy was everyone not leaving the house at all and doing all their shopping for anything imaginable on their laptops and having it delivered to their door.
Dude you know that this shopping from home on a computer is an old concept? Look for GE’s house of the future. It’s on UA-cam and it was recorded in the late 60’s or very early 70’s .
Dude, what kind of hone computer did you have in the 60s? Maybe a pre-release of the TRS80 that came out in 1977? Did yours still use punchcards? I probably would have been at Sears checking out the latest transistor radios 😂
@@robertsmith-dr5tm 1st home computer was the Commodore . But I remember seeing the punch cards and seeing them used. We had earlier internet in the US Army (1986) . But got to see the punch cards used to plot early artillery. My father was a communication specialist in the US Army in the 70’s .
Where is this Sears located? I hate seeing what's happened to Sears. They could have been Amazon if they'd just adapted quicker to online shopping. Just sad.
@DocumentEverythingToday I honestly thought they'd all closed in the continental US. I thought Hawaii and Puerto Rico were the only places left that had Sears.
Most people are nostalgic for their youth as a kid going to these stores, but the reality is that those same nostalgic kids killed these stores by shopping primarily online
So sad. Looks like a thrift store now. Last gasp for Sears. In 1984 these were the king of stores. And sardines can crowded too, specially at Christmas time. The Walmart, Target, Kohl's type stores killed this brand off like Kmart too. But now the big three are hurting financially too. They'll all close soon too.
I think that we can't blame online retailers for being nimble and offering a different experience. In my opinion the demise is due to poor management and lack of investment into the stores and the people. Shareholders are much to blame for demanding huge returns. Shortsighted
No. Sears made bad financial decisions, including their merger with K-Mart. That decline happened over a period of fourteen years. Craftsman and Kenmore went down the tubes, quality wise. It used to be that purchase of an appliance from Sears came with an affordable service/support plan. That ended years ago. Sears was also an early pioneer in the field of Store credit cards. Discover Card and Sears had a partnership at one point. The disappearance of the Sears Catalog was the beginning of the end. Good-Better-Best. It was as much about educating a customer as it was selling the item itself. The Internet could have brought that as an on-line experience. But PLENTY OF US would still be looking at the Sears catalog if it were still with us. The “Presentation” was EVERYTHING. Otherwise, you could buy the same items elsewhere for about the same prices.
I bought a wonderful winter bedspread about 12 years ago at the Sears in The Dedham Mall. The store is gone but the spread is on my bed right now. It's in great shape and looks new. Sears had quality bedding. Ask a clerk anywhere today for a bedspread and they don't know what it is. All they know are comforters.
When I just graduated from School, I remember walking into Sears to apply for a job. I told the old secretary to open a computer department, the old secretary lady said with a snark on her face, "So we should open up a department just for you ?", I replied, "Not just for me, but for Sears." If Sears had taken my advice back then, then they would have been able to compete with the likes of BestBuy and Amazon. Sears refused to change with the changing times. After that, I helped my boss expand his tiny junk store to a 10,000 sq ft computer store. Sears lost out on a talent like me because of racial discrimination.
So because some old secretary did not pass along some random person's advice to open a computer section in every store across the country, it's racial discrimination? Lol. Get over yourself, loser.
I sold jewelry in Malls for years. Back in the late 90's I was making $35k a year at a Mall Jewelry Store. Sadly Malls have been done in by the Internet. I can't even go to Malls to shop anymore. Its too depressing. AND I'm a Gen-X child so Malls were the place to hang out after school and on weekends, get stoned and eat way too much at the Food Court. Then off to the Movie Theatre down the hall from The Food Court to catch the latest flicks!! Great Memories 😢✌️🏳️🌈✌️
I don’t think Sears is worth fixing at this point. Current management seams to be milking every dollar out of the brand they can. I wish they will make a comeback but it’s a long shot.
This will fix itself when people tire of Amazon's shady practices and delivery companies letting everything get stolen off of porches. Unfortunately, Sears can't hold out long enough for the changes to come.
I live in Rhode Island, but used to frequent the South Shore Plaza when I lived in MA and worked at State Street in Quincy. Can't believe they are still open.... if you can call having ZERO customers at Christmastime "open".
We bought some of the highest quality appliances from Sears back in the very early 90's, Kenmore refrigerator that is still trucking, more than 32 years!! Other appliances like ranges, washers and dryers were also built to last. I love Sears and am sad to see this.
Often wondered if sears would have made it if they just stuck to their core businesses like home appliances, Craftsman tools, power tools, lawn maintenance equipment like lawn mowers and paints. They could have done without selling clothing, shoes and jewelry. Plenty of other stores sold those things. Always used to buy my Kenmore appliances from Sears for years till they closed all their stores in my city. 😢
Kenmore was a great brand. Loved their appliance exploded parts drawings and part numbers. I'm a fix-it and they saved their customers a lot of money by doing that.
Exploded parts views and parts list that were included with the product also meant that they were meant to be repaired and not to be thrown out when something went wrong with them. Sears made money on selling parts but of course they were just resourcing them from the vendors that made the product for them. If you knew a little bit about who made what product for Sears which could be determined by the first three digits of the model number, you could actually figure out where to get the same exact replacement part at a lot less money without the markup from Sears.
@@DocumentEverythingToday They sold Craftsman to Stanley Black & Decker a few years ago. I think Die Hard Batteries was sold to Advance Auto Parts. Lands End was also sold off.
Reminded me of a Burlington Coat Factory when they were on the way out with the wonky clothing selection! As someone else said, I was surprised any Sears were left in the US.
I forgot that Sears was a thing. When I was a kid in the 70's my mom went to sears for just about everything. Clothing, shoes, records, appliances, household goods, you name it, Sears could sell it to you at an affordable price. I still remember the layout of the Sears store that we went to on 79th street in Chicago, I think that was Kimbark Ave. Now, Sears is a shell of itself. There are still homes standing in N.W. Indiana that were the pre-fabricated homes that Sears sold in their early days.
I was at the Sears in Miami a few months ago it wasn't aas empty as this one i don't understand it maybe they should get better clothes and items to lure people in it's a shame to see a once powerhouse fall like this
I use to work at Sear's Ala Moana, Honolulu, 🏝️🏖️Hawaii. I worked, diligently and loved 🛒🛍️🎀🎁shopping during breaks/off days/after work. I really miss it, thank 🤙 you.😿🤧😤😭
Pretty sad sight...no customers AND no employees. I will say, however, the store was orderly and merchandised professionally. The store team is def putting in an effort.
The location in Westfield mall in Tukwila WA closed just 2 weeks ago. It was a real trooper surviving that long. I bought a few Craftsman items over the years but mostly small things like screwdrivers. I did buy a mattress in 2022 when there were shortages in other stores they had what I wanted in stock for a very good price. The location was a bit strange, hidden behind a full Nordstrom store on one side, and on the other side a large parking garage so you had to know it was there but a few popular restaurants on that side of the mall so busy on a weekend.
I live in streamwood Illinois and Their are no more Sears in Illinois which sucks and I miss the Sears outlet from Elgin and streamwood il and Woodfield Mall and spring hill mall from the early and mid 2010s, I really wish Sears can reopen.
Our mall Sears was always packed until the last few years where it started to look like this before it closed. For me, working on cars, I really miss Sears Hardware and USA Craftsman. It was special, not just another store.
The Craftsman tools currently found at Lowe’s & ACE are just not the same anymore -made in Taiwan and China😢 Quality is okay but just not quite the same. Diehard is now found at Advance auto parts and Carquest. Wonder if the remaining stores still stock the US made tools🤔
So do I. 😊 I also own my brother's. I bought it from him in the late 1980s, along with the other three figures from that set, still in the Kenner baggies and the backdrop & original box. I'm shocked at how expensive vintage Kenner stuff costs these days.
@@Starrgroove I always liked the tool section. I'm currently retired, but for almost 37 years I was using Craftsman tools that Dad started me out with back in May of 1987. I still have a picture of me that was made in a Sears, I'm guessing mid to late 1970s. It was when those Polaroid One Step cameras first came out. A rep was there making sample pictures for customers.
Living in the Boston area for the past 70 years and have been at almost a dozen Sears stores in MA and NH. I thought they all closed years ago but I am totally surprised that the last store in all of New England would be in Braintree, MA. If you know anything about the Boston area … let’s just say … that area is not greatest area … lol .. If I had to guess where that last store would have been at, it would have been at the Burlington Mall location.
Last time I went to a Sears store was over 22 years ago. They charged me a restocking fee for a cargo bag. Lost my business over a 10 dollars ridiculous fee
not like the sears of my day...hustle, bustle, santa, kids, store packed, christmas music playing, people happy, and merry. guess for all intensive purposes, my day is over.
I thought that was all pride mark’s building? It’s amazing it’s still there. I remember in HS going to the SSP , just to hangout and meet up with friends to walk over to see a movie at the Braintree cinema or movie theater ( now Dave and Busters ) .
Probably in the front. A lot of these stores are like that anymore. I've been through AJC penny's a Kohl's. An amazy's in the places aren't very busy anymore. And the employees Are all in the front pretty much. However, Dillords tens to have people all over the place. When it comes to workers but on a sweet there really bad. I mean pricing and all that I don't know how they're in business. Where other stores like these are struggling.
There's a lot of "online shopping killed Sears" in these comments. No. K-mart's mismanagement killed Sears. Sears was doing poorly before the Amazon boom. K-mart was already ruining its own image when it took over Sears and the two went down the toilet together. I'm amazed these Sears locations still exist. All the UA-camrs who document them really showcase how absolutely VACANT they are in terms of shoppers! Why are they being maintained? They aren't making any money.
We quit shopping at Sears in 1990 when they wouldn’t a extended warrantee we had on our lawn mower that we bought extra - NEVER HAVE PURCHASED anything at Sears after that.
I remember when Sears was the place to go !!!
Now it’s the place to not go!! Lol
and Radio Shack
Remember when you could order whatever you wanted from Sears, and they’d deliver it? They were the Amazon of the 20th century. What happened? Couldn’t‘ve all been due to a leverage buyout and vulture capitalism.
Was the main stop for tools.............once upon a time
Why not?? @@DocumentEverythingToday
I miss Sears so much it’s so sad to see that it is gone. I wish they would bring it back.
You're gonna never visit anyway... It would be a dead store
I remember when Sears sold popcorn. As soon as I smelled it, I knew we were getting close to Sears at the mall. My mom said they had a candy counter at one time as well.
Yes, and peanuts too!❤ Those were the days! 😊
@@caroleevanoff5930don't forget the roasted cashews and pistachios too!
This video breaks my heart. I remember in elementary school. we would be impatiently waiting for the Sears Christmas catalog. And Sears had a lot of stuff that you couldn’t get anywhere else. Today there is no Kenmore. They don’t have craftsman tools. They just might as well be any generic big box store. It’s so sad.
Last year my Kenmore dryer broke I had it for 40 years !!! T hey sure dont make anything like that any more
You would think that the store that essentially invented catalog sales would have adapted to online sales with no problems.
They were the first Amazon 😂
I didn't know there were any Sears stores left.
Less than a dozen. There are none near me
This is 1 of 11 left. Only one left in New England
THIS is NOT a store, it’s a MUSEUM!!!
Sad
No, museums have people in them.
Thank the brainiac in charge that said “we no longer need this wishbook” back in 1993 instead of thriving it on the internet. I miss the old quality of Sears Kenmore, Sears Craftsman, Sears Diehard, Free Spirit. Sears stood by their name! Now it’s just a memory. My best suits were all from Sears!
...., M.Wards, Younker's ( Des Moines, Iowa. ..Elder Beerman Stores : Sterling, IL and Carbondale, IL 2010), K's Mech-----(Midwest)....Venture, Kmart....
Easy to say "just move it to the web". The problem at Sears and other organizations going through major market changes are the people that you have working there are not the people that can "move it to the web". The old guard gradually goes down with the ship running the business that they know how to run.
I remember getting my first real suit and tie for a school dance at Sears. No more clip-on ties for me!
Craftsman is at Lowe's, diehard is at advance Auto
I remember fighting with my sister to see who got to look at the Sears Christmas catalog first when it came in the mail. Waaay back in the early 60’s.
same here
Late 60s for my brother and me. It was actually a time when we DIDN'T fight. We sat on the couch looking through it together circling our wishes ❤
For ( pre ) Christmas 1971…
Mom ordered thru Sears
Christmas catalog, for my
little brother and me
Small plastic NFL helmets
complete with decal sheet
And goalposts display stands.
We each got one, along with
a new belt with an NFL team
Logo buckle, me the Miami
Dolphins, bro the Dallas Cow-
boys.
That snowy December 12/25
morning, we were careful
placing the correct NFL labels
on the correct color helmets.
SIGH! the GOOD OL’DAYS! CB
Shocked, delighted and saddened all at the same time. Poor Sears.
I sold tools at SEARS back in the mid 1990's. That place was hopping at Christmas time. So sad to see. They'd have the Christmas shop up and fully operational at the end of August each year. I wonder if they still push the "Maintenance Agreement" on their tools, plumbing, and appliances. I hated trying to sell those things. Total rip-off.
Look at all the shoppers at sears!! Wall to wall people with happy smiles and wow!! Jammed packed with bodies!! 😮
Sears was the place to go back in the day when they had quality suppliers supplying them with products. Many of the main tool suppliers were supplying Craftsman tools and they were made in the USA.
Many of their appliances were supplied by Whirlpool, Frigidaire and other major manufacturers and parts were always readily available through many sources.
As many mentioned Sears went wrong when they failed to adapt to their customer base and embrace online shopping. They had the elements to get it right but they just never executed it properly.
Adding to that a CEO who was nothing more than a corporate raider and did not have the corporation's best interest in mind meant a slow sink to the bottom.
When I was a kid Sears Canada was an amazing store. Bustling with people at Christmas. Huge Toy Land. Lots of quality clothes, tools, furniture, etc. This video reminds me of when Sears started to die but this looks even worse.
Looks like a cleaned up Goodwill store
It was nice to see that some stores survived, but so sad to see how short sighted management was in the way these stores were run. It’s like they’re circling the drain now.
I remember Sears used to be jam packed with inventory. This video shows they nolonger use the valuable wall space to display their clothing. All the walls are bare. Sears also used to be packed with shoppers. Looks like Eddie Lambert has killed Sears. There have also been no new store openings in the thriving retail malls that still do exist across the United States America. As for the 11 store locations throughout the United States those locations are also listed as being available on Transformco's website. If a buyer comes forward those locations will also close. Sears is in trouble.
Sears Canada was also killed as well. What was the rationale for Sears Canada shutting down entirely at once in January 2018?
The vast majority of Sears in America also closed with no buyer of the property as well. Just like that, the last stores could also close and since sit abandoned... even before a buyer comes forward. Because unprofitable stores also close. Sears opened small format stores in 2016, 2017 and 2019. All of them closed at once in June 2023, some / the majority of which with no buyer coming forward.
As for Bed Bath and Beyond... It was recently announced that they would be once again opening stores in 2025
Rue21 was closing up shop this year but suddenly they just found a buyer of the brand name and intellectual property. And now that buyer, which is a Canadian company, is reopening stores and relaunching online website
@PacificNorthwestExploratio-k9j It was a mix of things. Eddie closed the distro center which meant no product going up to Canada. Then the properties that closed in the US was a mix of things including the first bankruptcy, property owners buying back the land from Sears, and Sears closing locations too far from open distribution centers. Pretty sure the online website only used Long Island anyways as their warehouse so there's a lot of reasons.
@@Shinycelebi Before the Sears and Kmart merger Kmart also had a seperate bankruptcy filing. Eddie also stepped in and invested in Kmart at the time so they could emerge from bankruptcy. He ended up with 54 percent ownership of Kmart before the merger even took place. Also at the time Sears while it was still a seperate corporation before the merger was noted as one of the most cash rich corporations in The United States. Sears also had just sold it's credit business to Citibank. The stockholders of both Sears and Kmart voted by proxy in two seperate elections in favor of merging the two retailers. This was how fast Eddie got his hands on Sears. After the merger Kmart's poor management stepped in and started to manage Sears. It was all down hill for Sears after that. The declines started and did not stop.
Depressing! I remember the day I went to my local Sears store parts center and found that they were closed. I had been going there for many years.
Here in Canada, they all closed their doors 6 years ago. Used to shop there all the time back in early 2000.
I remember when you could rent a tuxedo from Sears. They had a special department just for that.
What time of day was this? It looks you got there just as the store opened. Not even the employees showed up to work, it looks.
I filmed this on Friday the 20th around 1pm.
@EddievonnosyIf online shopping alone was to blame, Walmart would be gone. Costco, too. It's not the only reason.
The people who bought Sears basically just drained all the life out of the store... Or rather, all of the money. That's all they were interested in - not reinventing Sears in any way, just reading the cash out of the company.
Just like the clowns that brought Toys R Us to its end.
Back in the '90s I purchased a piece of luggage in Florida and went over to Maui Hawaii. Something happened with that luggage and I went to a Sears in Honolulu. Because it was from Florida they wouldn't do anything for me. I ended up buying another piece of luggage. I still like Sears. They were my first charge card I had many years ago.
Where are the employees? Many years ago I went to Sears to shop for a suit. The employee who helped me was great and experienced. He suggested a few different suits, pulled out some shirts and ties, and fitted the suit I picked out. Then walked me over to the shoe department and pointed out some shoes that would look great with my new suit. I returned a few days later to pick up my suit and the employee came out with it and happy that I had returned while he was on shift. That was called service. Someone in the corporation made the decision to get rid of experienced employees. Don't blame Amazon. They just filled a void.
Where do you think they are? At other, more secured jobs. Nobody wants to work for a company that's closing stores left and right.
@@Shinycelebi well it's still open so there should be some there.
@dchawk81 You missed the point. Because the company is closing stores and is unstable, nobody really wants to work for a place that is unstable. You're basically making it harder to find work if you let more stable jobs go by. I knew people who jumped ship and found better and rightfully so because their stores all closed eventually. The store may be open but in 2025, it's already way past time it's gone since Eddie isn't trying to exactly fix the company.
@@Shinycelebi No you're missing the point. An open store needs employees. This one looked like it didn't have any.
@dchawk81 Which again, doesn't mean they aren't hiring, it's people don't want to work there. 🙄
Still looks better than ours here in Seattle, which is basically 3 empty floors and locked doors.
I think they should have moved everything to the top floor would fill in a lot better.
Thank online shopping for this. 25 years ago this place would of been hopping with people. Sad to see
I remember going to Sears when I was a kid, not too long ago for back to school shopping. I had 4 stores in a 30mins drive. Now only this one that’s is a hour away.
Cars did this.
Nah not really. If that was the case, Target or Walmart would be suffering too.
According to my research, Sears just failed to cater to their consumer base, starting with the color scheme of this store shown in the video.
While it’s easy to put the blame on Amazon, there are other reasons or factors to consider.
Nah not really. If that was the case, Target or Walmart would be suffering too.
According to my research, Sears just failed to cater to their consumer base, starting with the color scheme of this store shown in the video.
While it’s easy to put the blame on Amazon, there are other reasons or factors to consider.
@@fastcombo33the two places you named have groceries as well which is a pretty big difference seeing as grocery shopping is one of the last things starting to catch on with online shopping, although even that is changing now. So as online shopping gets easier there will be less demand for a variety of stores. The ones that offer the most will be the last to go. They are probably safe for a long while as all the remaining in person shopping is being filtered there at this point. Finally, let's just be honest, these ppl in the comments might have nostalgia but they're also likely not shopping there, either. If you are computer literate enough to be commenting on youtube videos you are very likely part of the demographic who has begun heavily shopping online.
I use to work for Sears eons ago during the 80s in the back then... "Sears Tower" in the IT dept. as an (Assembler programmer using those green screens, tiny little pagers , and green bar paper, and the vaunted IBM Yellow card. Thankfully I just missed the Punch card days... had to deal with those in College.) , on the 48th floor. Had to always take 2 escalators to get there. Use to work in Catalog/ Liquidations dept. The view from there was magnificent. But prior to that I always remembered the Sears Department store on 79th street near the Chicago Skyway. They had a Christmas toy display that was magical. Toy trains running and Slot cars / Hot wheels / Matchbox cars running around on tracks. Catalog shutdown in 1990, so I had to move on to other companies in Chicago. But for 4 years from 1986 to 1990, was a blast to work in the Sears Tower.
Grills and Hawaiian shirts during Christmas time lol😅
When the Jersey City store was open, they had a stockpile of air conditioners in the winter lol.
The Hawaiian shirts I found funny. Not that popular here in New England during the winter. Maybe when we go on vacation, when we are tired of the cold.
Make Sears Great Again
That will never happen.
Now this is a campaign I can get behind.
20 years ago the fear was that the spread of Walmart that was going to spell the doom of traditional merchandising , when all along the actual enemy was everyone not leaving the house at all and doing all their shopping for anything imaginable on their laptops and having it delivered to their door.
Dude you know that this shopping from home on a computer is an old concept? Look for GE’s house of the future. It’s on UA-cam and it was recorded in the late 60’s or very early 70’s .
Dude, what kind of hone computer did you have in the 60s? Maybe a pre-release of the TRS80 that came out in 1977? Did yours still use punchcards? I probably would have been at Sears checking out the latest transistor radios 😂
@@robertsmith-dr5tm 1st home computer was the Commodore . But I remember seeing the punch cards and seeing them used. We had earlier internet in the US Army (1986) . But got to see the punch cards used to plot early artillery. My father was a communication specialist in the US Army in the 70’s .
I had all my children's baby pictures taken at Sears portrait studio. 😢
yes same here
God bless you Sears you are the only place that people went to for quality add value😊
Thank you very much for my comment Happy New Year
I like the upbeat music you chose, most UA-camrs would spin this as a depressing eulogy, you made this an addios on a high note. 😊
Where is this Sears located? I hate seeing what's happened to Sears. They could have been Amazon if they'd just adapted quicker to online shopping. Just sad.
Braintree Massachusetts. 1of11 left Only one in New England left.
@DocumentEverythingToday I honestly thought they'd all closed in the continental US. I thought Hawaii and Puerto Rico were the only places left that had Sears.
The last Sears in Hawaii closed in 2021 during covid. All 8 locations could soon be shut down (very likely)
@@DocumentEverythingToday A Hawaiian shirt isn't going to do you a lot of good in the Boston suburbs in December.
Most people are nostalgic for their youth as a kid going to these stores, but the reality is that those same nostalgic kids killed these stores by shopping primarily online
👀
So sad. Looks like a thrift store now. Last gasp for Sears. In 1984 these were the king of stores. And sardines can crowded too, specially at Christmas time. The Walmart, Target, Kohl's type stores killed this brand off like Kmart too. But now the big three are hurting financially too. They'll all close soon too.
I think that we can't blame online retailers for being nimble and offering a different experience. In my opinion the demise is due to poor management and lack of investment into the stores and the people. Shareholders are much to blame for demanding huge returns. Shortsighted
No. Sears made bad financial decisions, including their merger with K-Mart. That decline happened over a period of fourteen years. Craftsman and Kenmore went down the tubes, quality wise. It used to be that purchase of an appliance from Sears came with an affordable service/support plan. That ended years ago. Sears was also an early pioneer in the field of Store credit cards. Discover Card and Sears had a partnership at one point.
The disappearance of the Sears Catalog was the beginning of the end. Good-Better-Best. It was as much about educating a customer as it was selling the item itself. The Internet could have brought that as an on-line experience. But PLENTY OF US would still be looking at the Sears catalog if it were still with us. The “Presentation” was EVERYTHING. Otherwise, you could buy the same items elsewhere for about the same prices.
This makes me so sad. I remember going to Sears beginning in the 1960s when I was just a little dude. 😢
I bought a wonderful winter bedspread about 12 years ago at the Sears in The Dedham Mall. The store is gone but the spread is on my bed right now. It's in great shape and looks new. Sears had quality bedding.
Ask a clerk anywhere today for a bedspread and they don't know what it is. All they know are comforters.
When I just graduated from School, I remember walking into Sears to apply for a job. I told the old secretary to open a computer department, the old secretary lady said with a snark on her face, "So we should open up a department just for you ?", I replied, "Not just for me, but for Sears." If Sears had taken my advice back then, then they would have been able to compete with the likes of BestBuy and Amazon. Sears refused to change with the changing times. After that, I helped my boss expand his tiny junk store to a 10,000 sq ft computer store. Sears lost out on a talent like me because of racial discrimination.
So because some old secretary did not pass along some random person's advice to open a computer section in every store across the country, it's racial discrimination? Lol. Get over yourself, loser.
Walmart has done so much damage to our country. I shop there yes, because no other place to go. When I'm in another city I shop at the mall.
WHY is NO ONE there????
😳😬😠😢.
1960’s/1970’s
Shopping plaza & mall
Shopping, SEARS waz the
FIRST store I entered
& shopped in! 😢. CB
I sold jewelry in Malls for years. Back in the late 90's I was making $35k a year at a Mall Jewelry Store. Sadly Malls have been done in by the Internet. I can't even go to Malls to shop anymore. Its too depressing. AND I'm a Gen-X child so Malls were the place to hang out after school and on weekends, get stoned and eat way too much at the Food Court. Then off to the Movie Theatre down the hall from The Food Court to catch the latest flicks!! Great Memories 😢✌️🏳️🌈✌️
Talk about a shell of itself... looks more like a museum than a store.
Now that malls is becoming obsolete due to online shopping I didn't know Sears existed after that.
Man, the memories.
I found that Sears had higher prices on their clothing than Walmart
Props for the working escalators! My local mall which is still kinda busy can barely keep at least one escalator functioning
The first thing I always think about when i see things like this are how do we fix this?
I don’t think Sears is worth fixing at this point. Current management seams to be milking every dollar out of the brand they can. I wish they will make a comeback but it’s a long shot.
@DocumentEverythingToday days gone by
This will fix itself when people tire of Amazon's shady practices and delivery companies letting everything get stolen off of porches. Unfortunately, Sears can't hold out long enough for the changes to come.
@@illiniwood You can't beat the selection and prices on Amazon. Also I've never had any problem with porch pirates
Retailers have been coming and going for centuries. No particular one is special.
I was just there the other day doing my annual last trip to sears 😂. If it makes it to the end of 2025 I’ll be impressed.
I live in Rhode Island, but used to frequent the South Shore Plaza when I lived in MA and worked at State Street in Quincy. Can't believe they are still open.... if you can call having ZERO customers at Christmastime "open".
I miss SEARS Bad !!! Nothing as good now !!
We bought some of the highest quality appliances from Sears back in the very early 90's, Kenmore refrigerator that is still trucking, more than 32 years!! Other appliances like ranges, washers and dryers were also built to last. I love Sears and am sad to see this.
Wow I went to this Sears back in June and still recognize the same Hawaiian shirts they had then....
If they didn't sell them in June they not going to sell in the winter.
If it's a tourist area, they'll have them all year. Out Kmart here at the beach resort town had almost identical items year round.
@@TitaniumRhythm is your Kmart still open? I know there’s one in Miami, 1 in Guam, and 3 in USVI
Sears still has a store 😮 hang in there!
Often wondered if sears would have made it if they just stuck to their core businesses like home appliances, Craftsman tools, power tools, lawn maintenance equipment like lawn mowers and paints. They could have done without selling clothing, shoes and jewelry. Plenty of other stores sold those things. Always used to buy my Kenmore appliances from Sears for years till they closed all their stores in my city. 😢
Kenmore was a great brand. Loved their appliance exploded parts drawings and part numbers. I'm a fix-it and they saved their customers a lot of money by doing that.
They are slowly selling off the house brands like Craftsman. Not the same quality now.
Exploded parts views and parts list that were included with the product also meant that they were meant to be repaired and not to be thrown out when something went wrong with them.
Sears made money on selling parts but of course they were just resourcing them from the vendors that made the product for them. If you knew a little bit about who made what product for Sears which could be determined by the first three digits of the model number, you could actually figure out where to get the same exact replacement part at a lot less money without the markup from Sears.
They DID have satellite stores (Sears Appliance and Hardware) that only sold the goods that you mention, but they went out also 5-6 years ago.
@@DocumentEverythingToday They sold Craftsman to Stanley Black & Decker a few years ago. I think Die Hard Batteries was sold to Advance Auto Parts. Lands End was also sold off.
Reminded me of a Burlington Coat Factory when they were on the way out with the wonky clothing selection! As someone else said, I was surprised any Sears were left in the US.
Where is this store located? Last I heard there was only about a dozen or so left
Braintree Ma
I kept waiting for the zombies to jump out.
That’s insane any Sears stores are still open! I thought they were all long gone.
This looks like a Sears clearance store! And where is the staff?
Is it an old store? Grey carpeting is usually a thing from the '90s. and brown, even long before.
I thought they all closed.
That day is creeping on us slowly.
Looks like they bring the same dedication as seven years ago. No wonder their many other stores closed.
Gotta stay in budget
I forgot that Sears was a thing. When I was a kid in the 70's my mom went to sears for just about everything. Clothing, shoes, records, appliances, household goods, you name it, Sears could sell it to you at an affordable price. I still remember the layout of the Sears store that we went to on 79th street in Chicago, I think that was Kimbark Ave. Now, Sears is a shell of itself. There are still homes standing in N.W. Indiana that were the pre-fabricated homes that Sears sold in their early days.
Looks a nice store to go for some peace and quiet.
I was at the Sears in Miami a few months ago it wasn't aas empty as this one i don't understand it maybe they should get better clothes and items to lure people in it's a shame to see a once powerhouse fall like this
I use to work at Sear's Ala Moana, Honolulu, 🏝️🏖️Hawaii. I worked, diligently and loved 🛒🛍️🎀🎁shopping during breaks/off days/after work. I really miss it, thank 🤙 you.😿🤧😤😭
Pretty sad sight...no customers AND no employees. I will say, however, the store was orderly and merchandised professionally. The store team is def putting in an effort.
Think of how much this real estate must cost them 😵💫
The location in Westfield mall in Tukwila WA closed just 2 weeks ago. It was a real trooper surviving that long. I bought a few Craftsman items over the years but mostly small things like screwdrivers. I did buy a mattress in 2022 when there were shortages in other stores they had what I wanted in stock for a very good price.
The location was a bit strange, hidden behind a full Nordstrom store on one side, and on the other side a large parking garage so you had to know it was there but a few popular restaurants on that side of the mall so busy on a weekend.
Trouper, not trooper
We had a auto center and when they closed years ago i tried to buy the sign when they were selling off everything not glued down
I had no idea that any Sears still existed. Where is this? Shopping there would be more like an act of pity.
You found a Sears still open ?
I live in streamwood Illinois and Their are no more Sears in Illinois which sucks and I miss the Sears outlet from Elgin and streamwood il and Woodfield Mall and spring hill mall from the early and mid 2010s, I really wish Sears can reopen.
Our mall Sears was always packed until the last few years where it started to look like this before it closed. For me, working on cars, I really miss Sears Hardware and USA Craftsman. It was special, not just another store.
The Craftsman tools currently found at Lowe’s & ACE are just not the same anymore -made in Taiwan and China😢
Quality is okay but just not quite the same.
Diehard is now found at Advance auto parts and Carquest.
Wonder if the remaining stores still stock the US made tools🤔
Wow "Sears" what a nice Museum.😂😂😂😂❤❤
I’ve still got my Blue Snaggletooth action figure from Christmas 1978 thanks to Sears!
So do I. 😊 I also own my brother's. I bought it from him in the late 1980s, along with the other three figures from that set, still in the Kenner baggies and the backdrop & original box.
I'm shocked at how expensive vintage Kenner stuff costs these days.
@ That’s awesome! Not too many people can claim to own two Blues. Sears will live in my memory forever thanks to that figure.
@@Starrgroove I always liked the tool section. I'm currently retired, but for almost 37 years I was using Craftsman tools that Dad started me out with back in May of 1987.
I still have a picture of me that was made in a Sears, I'm guessing mid to late 1970s. It was when those Polaroid One Step cameras first came out. A rep was there making sample pictures for customers.
loved Sears miss it i liked shopping with my fam
They had excellent appliances back in the day
Living in the Boston area for the past 70 years and have been at almost a dozen Sears stores in MA and NH.
I thought they all closed years ago but I am totally surprised that the last store in all of New England would be in Braintree, MA. If you know anything about the Boston area … let’s just say … that area is not greatest area … lol ..
If I had to guess where that last store would have been at, it would have been at the Burlington Mall location.
Not a completely stocked store. But it brings back a lot of memories
Last time I went to a Sears store was over 22 years ago. They charged me a restocking fee for a cargo bag. Lost my business over a 10 dollars ridiculous fee
Amazon single handed shut sears down smh
Wow I thought all Sears were long gone.
not like the sears of my day...hustle, bustle, santa, kids, store packed, christmas music playing, people happy, and merry.
guess for all intensive purposes, my day is over.
I think "for all intensive purposes" is an eggcorn.🌰
You know it's bad when even thieves these days avoid Sears. Easy pickings. It's all so sad what happened to everything we used to know.
Just sad. You can tell they don't get the inventory like they use to, as I'm sure suppliers are avoiding them.
Tbh I didn't know they existed anymore. Why stay open if your store is like this? Can't be profitable.
I didn’t see any name brand items. All in house brands or no name you would see at any gift shop.
Hmm what happened to the decorations lol
I thought that was all pride mark’s building? It’s amazing it’s still there. I remember in HS going to the SSP , just to hangout and meet up with friends to walk over to see a movie at the Braintree cinema or movie theater ( now Dave and Busters ) .
No shoppers. No clerks. Wow.
Is sears still open?
Where are the employees?
Probably in the front. A lot of these stores are like that anymore. I've been through AJC penny's a Kohl's. An amazy's in the places aren't very busy anymore. And the employees Are all in the front pretty much. However, Dillords tens to have people all over the place. When it comes to workers but on a sweet there really bad. I mean pricing and all that I don't know how they're in business. Where other stores like these are struggling.
There's a lot of "online shopping killed Sears" in these comments.
No.
K-mart's mismanagement killed Sears.
Sears was doing poorly before the Amazon boom. K-mart was already ruining its own image when it took over Sears and the two went down the toilet together.
I'm amazed these Sears locations still exist. All the UA-camrs who document them really showcase how absolutely VACANT they are in terms of shoppers! Why are they being maintained? They aren't making any money.
The only value left in Sears is the real estate and the buildings. Transformco is basically sucking out the value that is left.
The Sears store in the Logan Valley Mall in Altoona PA closed two years ago. I miss that store.
Wow and I thought the one on cape was the last one, its been gone since 2018
I thought all the Northeast Sears closed ??? Weird to see a sears still open
I guess it will matter of time until this closes
With the rest in California, Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico
I don’t think the store was open??? No customers and no employees. Maybe shots taken by the security guard while the store was closed.
Agree.
Not a creature was stirring 😮 very liminal, dare I say backrooms-like. Not even a sign of any workers 😱
Sears is such a sad place these days. Go to Macy’s for a better shopping environment especially for Christmas.
it would be nice to have a sears in new jersey again
We quit shopping at Sears in 1990 when they wouldn’t a extended warrantee we had on our lawn mower that we bought extra - NEVER HAVE PURCHASED anything at Sears after that.
There are a few locations in Puerto Rico and like 11 in the mainland