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Sears and Kmart advertising

Interestingly theres a Kmart in Australia and its owned by Wesfamers and they are so far not affected by the cuts that the US edition of Kmart is facing though.


I believe there are actually still Woolworth stores in Australia.

This is why it baffles me that Sears and JC Penney would shut down their catalog businesses. Those were huge selling points back in the day. Why they didn't turn that into the online sales division just doesn't make sense. Did they underestimate the online sales boom that badly?

The last Sears catalog was published in 1993, which would be a few years before online retailing really started. Apparently their management didn't see that as a possibility. Even after they changed their catalog stores in smaller towns to Hometown stores where appliances and lawn and garden supplies were sold, they apparently didn't try to use them as a pickup spot for online orders, which I think was another mistake.

I actually prefer buying online and picking up at the local store for anything I can do that way. I did that with Best Buy this past weekend. I use Amazon or Ebay mainly for things I can't find locally.

Also, I agree that the Sears name will continue in some form. Someone will buy the rights even if the original company folds. I've actually seen a Montgomery Ward catalog with mail order merchandise like Fingerhut where someone bought the rights to the name.
 
Yes, I remember the massive catalogs at JCPenney just 5-6 years ago. They can be quite amusing to read, especially the vintage ones. I have a 1977 Sears catalog in very good condition, and it's fun to look through the 1000+ pages of items for sale, and laugh at how cheap the prices were.

Except in the electronics and appliance departments. In real dollar terms those items were
much more expensive than they are today.
 
"Target: We're better than Wal-Mart!" Of course, they would never say that, but they seem to have a higher-class clientele than Wal-Mart shoppers.

Not really. Just a higher class of prices. Target stores where I live (San Francisco Bay Area) have become quite pricey. Pay $30 for a Merona button down shirt that cost $20 just a couple of years ago? Not me. There are no WalMarts where I live, but when I get over to one of their East Bay stores, I am always impressed by how much cheaper they are than Target.
 
Not really. Just a higher class of prices. Target stores where I live (San Francisco Bay Area) have become quite pricey. Pay $30 for a Merona button down shirt that cost $20 just a couple of years ago? Not me. There are no WalMarts where I live, but when I get over to one of their East Bay stores, I am always impressed by how much cheaper they are than Target.

The nearest Target and Wal-Mart to me are just a mile or so from each other, so undoubtedly a lot of the same shoppers frequent both. That Target is only a couple miles away from the next closest Target, which still puzzles me.
 
The nearest Target and Wal-Mart to me are just a mile or so from each other, so undoubtedly a lot of the same shoppers frequent both. That Target is only a couple miles away from the next closest Target, which still puzzles me.

In Mountain View CA (home of Google), there was a Target first, then a Walmart opened up on the same block. After that, the Target's business must have dropped by 50%, while the WalMart is always jammed-packed with customers. Both are still in business, though.
 
If Sears is gone by 2019. I can see other countries step in and claim copyright on the Sears Name and use it for stores in their area.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robinsons_Malls

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_Company_California

http://www.robinsonsdepartmentstore.com.ph/

Case and Point Robinsons Stores they were once seen as the biggest department stores in the Los Angeles Area and was as big as Sears at its height in the Southland. Once Robinsons (Los Angeles Edition) went away due to ownership changes and its subsequent rebranding to Macy's somehow the Philippine Investment group ran with that brand and used the Robinsons name for their Manila Area malls and big box stores.

https://www.lamag.com/askchris/a-lo...-glamorous-beverly-hills-store-is-demolished/
 
They can't just claim a copyright that's an asset in a bankruptcy.

Not to mention - what would be the point of that? "Sears" is either not known as a brand in many countries - so it would have no cachet - or if known, would have a negative connotation - decrepit stores, mediocre pricing - ugly clothing, etc...
 
Said in jest, of course. The French word for "target" is "cible." The origins of "target" are in Old English, not French.

Which itself has roots in Norman French that came to Britain with William the Conqueror in 1066.
(we researched the origins of my mother's maiden name, and that's where it came from)
 
They can't just claim a copyright that's an asset in a bankruptcy.

Yup. A good example I can think of is Service Merchandise.
After they went bankrupt their former CEO, Raymond Zimmerman, bought the name,
trademark and internet domain from the bankruptcy court and re-opened an online jewelry store.
 
Yup. A good example I can think of is Service Merchandise.
After they went bankrupt their former CEO, Raymond Zimmerman, bought the name,
trademark and internet domain from the bankruptcy court and re-opened an online jewelry store.

And of course China pirates American trademarks and brands and other "protected" intellectual property freely. I don't think "Sears" would be of any use there, though, too difficult to pronounce for native Chinese speakers.
 
Who would want the K-Mart name? It's been a laughing stock in retail for over a decade. The only name that has some legacy is Toys R Us, and they are thinking of relaunching the brand.

I was unaware that Circuit City still lives on. They don't have any stores anymore. All of the ones here were bought by P.C. Richards.
 
Who would want the K-Mart name? It's been a laughing stock in retail for over a decade. The only name that has some legacy is Toys R Us, and they are thinking of relaunching the brand.

I was unaware that Circuit City still lives on. They don't have any stores anymore. All of the ones here were bought by P.C. Richards.

https://www.wesfarmers.com.au/our-businesses/our-businesses

Apparently Wesfarmers an Australian investment group hold the rights to Target and Kmart in Australia.
 
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