An anchor since Leigh Mall’s inception nearly four decades ago, Columbus’ Sears store permanently will close April 29, as part of a nationwide corporate restructuring in response to sluggish sales, amid a still-shaky economy.
Kimberly Freely, spokesperson for Illinois-based Sears Holding Corporation, which has owned both Sears and Kmart since 2005, Monday confirmed the closure.
In addition to the Columbus store, along with Sears stores in Jackson and McComb, between 100 and 120 Sears Holding Corp. stores nationwide will close this year.
In Columbus, workers have been standing along Highway 45 North for the past few weeks, holding signs announcing liquidation sales. Freely said the store will continue to liquidate its inventory until the end of April. Customers will still be able to use Sears gift cards online and at all neighboring Sears stores, after the Columbus store closes.
The next anchor store for Leigh Mall remains unknown, with mall officials unwilling to speculate on what might fill the 41,000 square foot space.
The mall is owned by Security National Properties, a division of California-based Security National Master Holding Company.
Chad Christensen, senior vice president of real estate for Security National Properties, noted the company currently has no firm commitments on the retail space.
“I don’t want to put anything in the paper until we have something firm,” Christensen said. “We tend to want to have something concrete. But we’re obviously working on filling that vacancy.”
The first wave of closures was announced in December following disappointing holiday sales, despite the National Retail Federation’s report of a 16 percent uptick in Black Friday sales nationwide.
Shortly after Christmas, Sears Holdings Corp. posted a fourth quarter sales performance drop of 5.2 percent, with Sears showing a 6 percent decrease and Kmart reflecting a 4.4 percent decrease in comparable store sales for the eight-week period ending Dec. 25, 2011.
Sears Holdings Corp. reported a 2.6 percent decrease in yearly sales, with Sears showing a 3.3 percent decrease in sales and Kmart showing a 1.8 percent decrease.
Freely declined to give sales figures for the Columbus store.
The majority of Sears’ fourth quarter sales decline was due to plummeting consumer electronics and home appliance sales, while apparel sales showed little change from the previous year. Kmart showed decreases in consumer electronics and apparel sales as well as lower layaway sales.
The independently-owned Starkville Sears will remain open, according to store owner Tiffany Lilley.
The Dispatch incorrectly reported the closing date of the Columbus store as April 15, 2012 in our Sunday, March 11 edition.
Carmen K. Sisson is the former news editor at The Dispatch.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 36 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 36 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
