Sears Holdings released a list of 63 stores that it will be closing after reporting a 31% drop in sales in the three months ending May 5.
The US retailer said on that it had identified 100 non-profitable Sears and Kmart stores and made the decision to shut 63 down in June and July.
“We continue to evaluate our network of stores, which are a critical component in our transformation, and will make further adjustments as needed and as warranted,” Sears said in a statement announcing its Q1 2018 results.
Sears initially planned on closing 72 stores, but ultimately decided to scale back slightly and shut 48 Sears stores and 15 Kmart stores – adding up to 63 stores across 29 states.
The nine stores that it had initially planned on also closing will be evaluated further, Sears said.
Employees impacted by the store closures will receive severance and have the opportunity to apply for positions at open positions at other Sears or Kmart stores.
The announcement of these closures come after the retailer shut 64 Kmart stores and 39 Sears stores earlier this year and adds to the hundreds of store closures over the past few years.
At the end of the first quarter Sears operated a total of 894 stores, down 381 compared to a year ago.
Same-store sales dropped by 11.9 percent overall in the first quarter of 2018. The retailer reported quarterly loss of $424 million, or $3.93 per share on sales of $2.89 billion, down from $4.2 billion in the prior year quarter.
The company’s last profitable year was in 2010. It has since lost over $11.2 billion.
