r/retailporn

Because of pure greed, he was able to strip these iconic brands and sell them off for parts piece by piece until nothing remained. Pensions gone, retirements went up in smoke, and local communities went belly up.

This mall has the only Sears left in Massachusetts,they had a lot of cute swimsuits, I used to shop at the Sears junior department when I was in middle and high school and was sad when most of the stores closed

This is one of my better finds from the bins

Ruehl no.925, Specifically inspired by Greenwich Village in New York City.

This was a short lived spinoff brand by Abercrombie, which targeted young adults in their 20’s and 30’s. Even though they ended the brand, Abercrombie soon after shifted their main brand to target young adults while it used Hollister to target teens.

The stores were also equally as dark as the other brands under Abercrombie

Walmart has since moved to a larger location nearby.

It was kind of weird, coming off as a weird cross between a Walmart and a convenience store, having Walmart's "Airport" design package and with the employees wearing regular Walmart vests, but with the layout and merchandise assortment of a convenience store.

In this post I am using the pictures of various locations (including my local Sears in the Seattle area) just to show what they still have, as well as screenshots of what the 140 year old retailer's e-commerce website looked like in the early 2000s and 2010 as well as what it looks like today.
When the internet first started in the 1990s Sears had and they still do have a website Sears.com and they have since been selling online and still are to this day. They had the best product selection, lots of web pages and all merchandise from Sears itself. But even after Kmart bought Sears they were still good (and still looked good) at web design in the mid to late 2000s and even into the early 2010s but past 2013-14 it was unthinkable that the e-commerce business would deteriorate, product quality (especially major appliances) would decline, product selection would decline substantially site wide and later in stores, shipping speed would decline and the service department would go downhill, coupled with a whole lot of consumers turning there back on Sears over appliances breaking down throughout the 2010s decade under the tenure of Eddie Lampert as chairman and CEO.
That being said, despite Sears' troubles the retailer still had appliance and electronics dominance, we still bought from them and we have still been getting emails from them and visiting there website. In all of our years of shopping here, we went to Sears Optical, bought a JVC TV, treadmill, Sony digital cameras, a Canon point and shoot camera, a Kenmore Progressive upright vacuum, some rugs, a Whirlpool fridge from 2013 (Sears Outlet), and even clothing, as well as a Hamilton Beach toaster oven, a Kenmore coffee maker and Samsung stove from Sears.
Please go and support them while you still can. Even site wide.
So.....
When did you last buy from Sears site wide and/or even in store, what product and where, and when and where did you last work for Sears ?
When was the last year Sears could have been saved ? (I would say around 2004-05 of course but since they were still doing fine after the merger (Kmart Corporation acquired Sears Roebuck and Company but still called it Sears Holdings Corporation) the year I would have to go with would be around 2010-2013)
Will / would you still shop at (also meaning buy from) Sears in 2025, even if / though the sales floors are limited on merchandise and the website Sears.com is also limited on merchandise sold by Sears ? If not why not ?

This is what is left of Sears:
5 stores
- Coral Gables in Miami Florida 1954 - present
- Sun Valley Shopping Center in Concord California 1966 - present
- South Shore Plaza in Braintree Massachusetts 1980 - present
- Cielo Vista Mall in El Paso Texas 1982 - present
- The Florida Mall in Orlando Florida 1986 - present
- Sears.com 1997-99 - present
- Kenmore 1913 - present
- Sears Home Services sometime in the 1950s/1960s or 1992 - present
- Shop Your Way 2009 - present
- Sears Parts Direct 1995 - present

Sources, Locations and Photo Credits:
Southcenter Mall in Seattle Washington (1994 - 2024)
Sears Tukwila Facebook Page sometime in March 2011
https://www.facebook.com/sears.tukwila
Myself on December 28th of 2016, July 9th of 2024, September 10th of 2024 and November 6th of 2024
Coral Gables in Miami Florida (1954 - present)
L A July 31st 2025 (Kenmore Studio) on Google
Sun Valley Shopping Center In Concord California (1966 - present)
Zohaib Khan December 5th of 2017 on Google
Kazeem Adebiyi May 19th of 2018 on Google
Sears Website
Sears.com
Wayback Machine
Sears.com in the early 2000s
https://web.archive.org/web/20030401082436/http://www.sears.com/sr/homepages/sears_homepage.jsp
Sears.com in 2010
Sears: Appliances, Tools, Electronics, Apparel and more from Craftsman, Kenmore, Diehard and other Leading Brands
Sears.com today
Shop: Appliances, Tools, Clothing, Mattresses And More
https://www.sears.com/
https://web.archive.org/web/20100528184610/http://www.sears.com/
Appliances: Home and Kitchen Appliances | Sears.com
https://www.sears.com/appliances/b-1020003?subCatView=true&storeOrigin=Sears&filterList=storeOrigin
TVs and Electronics - Buy Electronic Products Online from Sears
https://www.sears.com/tvs-electronics/b-1231469010?adcell=hp_CatLink_CE&storeOrigin=Sears,Sears%20Authorized%20Supplier&filterList=storeOrigin
Vacuums and Floor Cleaning Equipment for your Home from Sears
https://www.sears.com/appliances-vacuums-floor-care/b-1020018?subCatView=true&storeOrigin=Sears&filterList=storeOrigin
Small Kitchen Appliances | Coffee Makers, Blenders and more | Sears
https://www.sears.com/appliances-small-kitchen-appliances/b-1020025?storeOrigin=Sears,Sears%20Authorized%20Supplier&filterList=storeOrigin
Buy Home Heating, Air Conditioners and Air Quality Products at Sears
https://www.sears.com/appliances-heating-cooling-air-quality/b-1325041153?storeOrigin=Sears,Sears%20Authorized%20Supplier&filterList=storeOrigin
Tools | Buy Tools Online from Sears.com
https://www.sears.com/tools/b-1020000?subCatView=true&storeOrigin=Sears&filterList=storeOrigin
Outdoor Living
Camping Chairs | Camping Tables - Sears
https://www.sears.com/fitness-sports-outdoor-activities-camping-hiking-camping-chairs-tables/b-1340958908?storeOrigin=Sears&filterList=storeOrigin
https://www.sears.com/world-famous-sports-stars-and-stripes-quad-folding-chair-w-cup-holder-and-carry-bag/p-A120342662
Camping Air Mattresses | Camping Air Beds - Sears
https://www.sears.com/fitness-sports-outdoor-activities-camping-hiking-camping-air-mattresses/b-1340958905?storeOrigin=Sears&filterList=storeOrigin
Grills and Outdoor Cooking
https://www.sears.com/outdoor-living-grills-outdoor-cooking/b-1024045?storeOrigin=Sears,Sears%20Authorized%20Supplier&filterList=storeOrigin
Home - Kenmore
https://kenmoregrill.com/
Grills - Kenmore
https://kenmoregrill.com/kenmore-product-category/grills/
The Latest Showroom
Kenmore Studio – Sears Virtual Store
https://searsvirtualstore.com/kenmore-studio/

SEARS
140 Years
1886 - 2026
1886 - present

Edit: by Cielo Vista Mall I mean the Sears in El Paso TX

This location was open as a classic 1990s Disney Store until they closed all their locations a few years ago, then has been a few different shops like this since then. I know of a few malls that have a temporary type store like this in a more modern former Disney Store, but most Disney Stores of this era had been renovated long before the end of them.

This building began life as a rollerskating rink, and was later converted to a store after being acquired by Walmart. I used to go here frequently while my mother worked at the old Walton Life Fitness Center. A lot of the shopping carts there were old "Big K" carts left over from Walmart's acquisition of Kuhn's Big K.

A couple of things to note in these photos: first, the company vehicles parked in front of the building are painted in the same color scheme as Sam Walton's truck. Second, note the retired Walmart sign on a flatbed in the last photo. No idea where that came from, though I suspect that it might be from the Bentonville Supercenter location, seeing as that store is currently undergoing a remodel.

Garden Ridge was the predecessor to At Home. Their color used to be red, and you can see some remnants around the store. Not much else, as it's pretty much just a warehouse... but the roof is pretty cool.

This single level mall that opened in 1971 is basically on its last leg at this point and it won't be long. More than half of the mall has been empty and this historic staple has been a ghost town since the pandemic. Walking into a JC Penny today is like walking into a Sears, considering that a whole lot of JCP locations still have the original lighting, home department and apparel that Sears has. As of the day of this post, there are 51 stores in this mall. JCP has 645 stores, including this one here in Sacramento (Citrus Heights) and it is the last anchor of this mall, Macy's has 408 and Sears has 5, including the last one here in the state of California, at Sun Valley Shopping Center in Concord, which is 1 hour and 22 minutes away from here, and all 3 of these department store chains are still online to this day. All of this to say that Sears left this mall on July 15th of 2018, followed by both the Macy's Men and Home store and Women and Children store last year on March the 23rd, leaving the mall with the last anchor tenant, JC Penney. The Macy's Men's and Home Store was originally a Weinstock's.

Photo Credits and Sources as well as Dates Taken
Sunrisemall on Wikipedia / Wikimedia Commons July 20 2011 (Mall)
File:Outside of Sunrise Mall, Citrus Heights, CA.jpg - Wikimedia Commons
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Outside_of_Sunrise_Mall,_Citrus_Heights,_CA.jpg
J.smith on Wikipedia / Wikimedia Commons July 13 2007 (Mall)
File:Sunrise Mall - inside.jpg - Wikimedia Commons
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sunrise_Mall_-_inside.jpg
Carl Hood on Google July 28 2025 (Mall)
Lorraine Godsey on Google February 8 2025 (Macy's Women and Children)
Linda Hulsey-Magness on Google March 5 2025 (Weinstock's / Macy's Men and Home)
Juee R. on Yelp December 31st 2012 / sometime in December 2012 (Sears)
https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/sears-citrus-heights-2
Brandon Brunson on Google August 8 2017 (Sears)
kIRA on Google March 23 2018 (Sears)
Vanessa on Google July 19 2017 (Sears)
Suresh Babu on Google January 28 2018 (Sears)
Sergio Musetti on Google November 11 2017 (Sears)
Carly Bradley on Google January 3 2018 (JCPenney)

Sunrise Mall (Citrus Heights, California) - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunrise_Mall_(Citrus_Heights,_California)

https://www.sunrisemallonline.com/

www.macys.com
www.sears.com
www.jcpenney.com

r/SEARS
r/kmart
r/retail
r/retailporn

I suppose Sears could have revamped the online store Sears.com and updated there antiquated logistics any year, including this one, which also involves shipping from the remaining 5 stores, if business sense was thrown out the windows... as since they have a couple distribution centers owned by TransformCo they will probably do a bit better than Montgomery Ward, Circuit City and Radio Shack.
Given that we dwell in reality, however, I would say right around 2000 (they could have also launched and expanded non-mall locations like Sears Grand and Sears Hardware, as well as small format stores like the Sears Hometown and Outlet Stores, Sears Appliance Stores and so forth around that time, followed by using some locations out of the dozens, hundreds and even thousands they had as distribution centers for online orders and offering in person pick up), when Sears began selling online and was getting a new CEO... and Mary Conway, who was President of the Retail Stores, was a true merchant, she rose up through the ranks as an in-store Merchant, Store Operating Superintendent, Store Manager of several stores, VP / Vice President of Eastern Territory, and finally, President of Retail. She would have been an ideal CEO to save Sears as she had the vision and execution. And of course, back when Sears still had the credit card division had Sears had that more competent CEO (not Alan Lacy that sold the company to Lampert) come in and revitalized them, invested in stores, IT and brands, without selling off the credit card operation and such. Had that "ideal CEO to save Sears" been involved by 2000, the retailer would have kept the online store they launched in around 1997-99 going with everything from Sears itself, invested heavily in infrastructure, prioritized logistics and software, and even embraced, launched and expanded the online marketplace while also focusing more on first party products (sold direct) on the Sears website rather than just leave them almost entirely to third party sellers, followed by a complete overhaul of the Shop Your Way / SYW app to let people order from Sears within the new combined app in the late 2000s and early 2010s, and expanded the other concepts I just mentioned above. Any ideas on this ?

Similar questions
https://www.reddit.com/r/SEARS/comments/1jybpup/could_sears_have_been_saved_before_the_21st_century/
https://www.reddit.com/r/SEARS/comments/1lpk8eg/the_last_year_sears_could_have_been_saved/
https://www.reddit.com/r/SEARS/comments/ljquib/could_have_sears_grand_succeeded/
https://www.reddit.com/r/SEARS/comments/1huq33z/what_if_sears_perhaps_launched_sears_hardware/
https://www.reddit.com/r/SEARS/comments/1opf6lk/could_sears_hardware_have_been_a_successful_concept/

Sources and Locations
Wayback Machine
https://web.archive.org/web/20000301000000*/Sears.com
Sears Grand at Jordan Landing in West Jordan, Utah on October 27th of 2007, closed on November 25th of 2018 (Credit: Caldorwards4)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jordan_Landing
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sears_Grand_at_Jordan_Landing_in_West_Jordan,_Utah.JPG
Location and date taken unknown but somewhere in Utah, anyone know where exactly this was?
https://www.kmartworld.com/2009/09/special-report-sears-grand-viable_03.html
Sears Grand at Pittsburgh Mills in Tarentum, Pennsylvania on January 3rd of 2013 (Credit: Nicholas Eckhart (Niceckhart) aka / also known as Fan of Retail, Store Closed January 2015)
https://www.flickr.com/search/?user_id=71978807%40N03&view_all=1&text=Sears+Grand+in+Tarentum%2C+PA
Sears Hardware Store in Portage Indiana
https://www.facebook.com/SearsAHSPortageIN

This specific store was located at The Patio Shops, a shopping center in Columbus. While the building is long gone, you can still see the drive thru lanes in the parking lot today.