By Joshua Burd
At least eight Kmart stores in New Jersey will be among those to have closed this year, following an announcement on Thursday that parent company Sears Holdings Corp. would shutter additional locations beyond the lists unveiled earlier this year.
Company executives said Kmart stores at 808 Route 46 in Parsippany and 401 Route 38 in Moorestown were among 28 stores included in the latest round of closures. The stores are slated to close around mid-November, as the iconic retailer deals with slumping sales, declining in-store traffic and increased competition.
They join Kmart stores in Clementon, East Brunswick, Pleasantville, Rio Grande, Mantua and Manahawkin that were among more than 250 locations targeted for closure earlier this year by Sears Holdings. Published reports say the company has also targeted several Sears locations in the Garden State.
To date in fiscal year 2017, Sears Holdings has shuttered about 180 stores previously announced for closure, the company said, while another 150 are expected to be closed by the end of the third quarter.
“We are making progress on the strategic priorities we outlined earlier this year and remain focused on returning our company to profitability,” said Edward S. Lampert, chairman and CEO of Sears Holdings. “The comprehensive restructuring of our operations is delivering cost efficiencies and helping drive improvements to our operating performance.
“While the third quarter has historically been our most difficult quarter over the past several years, we are working towards making meaningful improvement in our performance this year as a result of the restructuring actions we have put in place, and our continued focus on the expansion of our Shop Your Way ecosystem.”
Sears and Kmart are among an ever-growing list of recognizable retail brands that have announced store closures over the past year as they grapple with changes in consumer behavior.
