Hardware Retailing The Industry's Source for Insights and Information
While Sears Holdings has recently announced hundreds of store closures, the company is also introducing a new business model to the market. Sears Appliances & Mattresses in Pharr, Texas, is a new Sears-branded store that cuts out the other categories to focus exclusively on appliances and mattresses, according to the company.
The first store of its kind from the company, Sears Appliances & Mattresses “showcases the top 10 major appliance brands, including Kenmore®, and mattresses from top brands, including Tempur-Pedic®, Beautyrest, Sealy, Serta, Simmons and Stearns & Foster,” the company says.
Although the Texas store is the standalone Sears Appliances & Mattresses location, the company says “plans are underway to open additional Sears freestanding stores dedicated to two of its strongest categories.”
The business is about 20,000 square feet and has 22 employees to date, store manager Albert Silva told CNBC. Silva also explains to CNBC that Pharr, Texas, is about three miles from Mexico, so international “border business” should help the new store thrive.
The store will also act as a location to pick up any item from the company’s website without requiring shipping costs to the customer.
“In some ways [this store] makes sense,” GlobalData Retail’s managing director Neil Saunders told CNBC. “Sears is best known for appliances and mattresses, and that’s where its strengths lie. A standalone store in the right location is more likely to attract customers.”
However, in the CNBC article, Saunders says the new format store is a “drop in the ocean” in relation to Sears’ other challenges. Facing a competitive market, and as more home improvement companies look to sell the appliance category, it will remain a competitive retail venture.
