Sears Canada Inc. says sales of major appliances, furniture and mattresses helped its performance in the third quarter but overall revenue was down and the department store retailer continues to lose money.Sales in the latest three-month stretch fell more than 5 per cent, to $792.1 million, a decline the retailer attributed to the closing of more stores. But same-store sales — which measures sales at outlets that have been open for more than a year — at surviving locations are stabilizing it appears, climbing 0.4 per cent overall in the third quarter. Sears Canada said same-store sales were up 2.7 per cent at “core” locations.MORE: Sears Canada sells off more real estate, distribution centreSears Canada considers its 95 full-line department stores and 43 Sears Home stores to be its core retail network, excluding outlets, 144 hometown stores and its direct-to-consumer channel through online and catalogue sales.The company has 1,200 catalogue and online merchandise pickup locations.
For the period, Sears, which has tried to turn around a prolonged slide in recent quarters under various leaders, lost $53.2 million — an improvement over last year’s third quarter loss, which amounted to $118.7 million.Earlier this month, Sears Canada Inc. said it had hired Carrie Kirkman, a veteran of the Canadian retail industry, to be its president and chief merchant – a new position created to restore shoppers’ confidence in the struggling department store operator.Kirkman has most recently been interim president of shoe retailer Nine West Canada and was president of Jones Apparel Group from October 2010 until last April.Kirkman will work with Brandon G. Stranzl, who has been executive chairman of Sears Canada since the departure of Ronald Boire, who was chief executive and president of the troubled Canadian department store company for less than a year.WATCH: Sears Canada loses chief executive Ron Boire in July.Law of the Jingle: Sleep Country obtains temporary injunction against Sears Canada A judge says Sears Canada can't use the marketing slogan "there is no reason to buy a mattress anywhere else” because it's too similar to Sleep Country Canada's jingle
Retail rivals to benefit from Sobeys and Sears’ woes as international players retreat: Desjardins The Canadian consumer sector is set to make gains in 2017, as retailers’ earnings benefit from improved GDP growth and a strengthening employment outlook Sears Canada doubles loss as sales slide 21%, stock down staggering 75% over year Quarterly revenue was $625.2 million, down 21.1 per cent compared to the third quarter of 2015 Sears Canada unveils a new store format as it tries to turnaround sliding sales The department store chain unveiled its latest store makeover on Tuesday at its Promenade Mall store in north Toronto Sears Canada Inc posts loss as sales fall 15.6%, retailer plans higher cost cuts Same-store sales fell 5.5% as traffic for big-ticket items such as major appliances fell due to termination of a credit card agreement Sears Canada’s new logo ‘bold, confident’ and not blue-and-white The new look, which evenly spaces the five obvious letters before a punctuating red stencil of a maple leaf is, at first glance, perhaps a bit nondescript
Sears Canada loses another top executive: Carrie Kirkman out less than a year after joining company Sears Canada’s revolving door reputation seems to only be getting worse: 'This is a really bad management practice,' says one expert Sears Canada says it will cut more costs as it posts bigger loss Sears Canada, which agreed sell and lease back a distribution outlet in Calgary in March, said on Wednesday it has entered a similar agreement for another outlet in British Columbia Five things you should know before you start your work day on April 28 Sears reinvents itself and are Moose Knuckles really made in Canada? These stories and more in your morning cheat sheet to the Financial Post. Sears Canada is trying to radically reinvent itself with new leadership, culture and technology The goals are admirable but many experts believe this major overhaul should have happened at Sears Canada years ago and remain skepticalTORONTO — Sears Canada, which has been struggling with store closures and sagging sales, said Friday it will venture into the grocery business in an effort to lure shoppers.
The Toronto-based retailer said it has signed a partnership with two specialty supermarket operators to run food markets at some of its revamped locations. The company declined to provide further details. But executive chairman Brandon G. Stranzl said he is confident the agreement will bring customers to Sears more frequently. “A grocery store, you might go to two or three times a week,” Stranzl said in an interview. “A department store you might go to once a month ... once a quarter or something.” The announcement came as Sears Canada reported its third-quarter loss more than doubled from the same time last year. “We’re not, obviously, happy with where the business is financially,” Stranzl said. Sears Canada’s loss rose to $120.0 million from $53.2 million during the same period last year as revenue declined. That amounted to $1.18 per share, compared with 52 cents per share a year ago. Quarterly revenue was $625.2 million, down 21.1 per cent compared to the third quarter of 2015, when the company had $792.1 million in revenue.
Same-store sales at Sears Canada (TSX:SCC) — those at locations open during the third quarters of 2015 and 2016 — totalled $507.5 million. That’s down from $616.8 million last year when the company had more stores. Once a mainstay of the Canadian shopping experience, Sears Canada has seen its footprint erode over time. It operates 211 corporate and hometown stores in the country, down from 306 in the same quarter last year. Most of the closures were franchisee-owned stores in rural areas, said Stranzl. The company’s financial situation won’t turn around “overnight,” he added. Sears has roots in Canada that date back more than 60 years. It has been attempting to stage a comeback by redesigning its stores, setting aside less square footage for its current merchandise and leaving more space to bring in new partnerships such as the ones it announced Friday. Other companies such as Walmart and Shoppers Drug Mart have also entered the grocery business in recent years.