Content about Sears

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — Sears Holdings announced Tuesday that Robert Schriesheim will join the company as EVP and CFO. Schriesheim, who starts with the company immediately as EVP, will assume his responsibilities as CFO, effective Aug. 22.

Schriesheim, 51, most recently was CFO for Hewitt Associates, leading the company's global financial and administrative roles until its merger with Aon.

IRVINE, Calif. — Dr. Sears Family Essentials has appointed a new VP marketing.

Roeya Badri Vaughan will be responsible for driving awareness and sales of the company's doctor-formulated, kid-approved line of 100% all-natural snacks, beverages and supplements.

Prior to joining Dr. Sears Family Essentials, Vaughan served as head of product marketing at Arbonne, where she spearheaded the relaunch of its flagship anti-aging skin care line, introduced a comprehensive cosmetics line and developed a breakthrough line of nutrition products.

IRVINE, Calif. — A line of popped whole grain crisps has expanded to include three new varieties.

Dr. Sears Family Essentials' Popumz now includes barbecue, ranch and cheddar varieties. The all-natural crisps are packed with protein, fiber and omega-3 DHA, the company said. The new flavors join the current lineup of sweet Popumz flavors of chocolate, vanilla and caramel.

The new Popumz crisps will retail for $3.99 per box of five 0.75-oz., single-serve bags.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — Kmart parent company Sears Holdings has named William Phelan as acting CFO, replacing Michael Collins, currently SVP and CFO, who resigned last week to pursue another opportunity, the company reported in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.

Collins will remain with the company until June 10 in order to ensure a smooth transition, Sears noted in the filing.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — The parent company of Kmart is considering taking its headquarters out of Illinois, according to published reports.

One has to admire a person who perseveres through hardship and difficulty, and the same goes for companies that keep going and keep trying, no matter what the market throws at them.


BENTONVILLE, Ark. and HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — Walmart and Sears Holdings have both announced their commitment to helping military members maintain employment when moving from one community to another.

The commitment is in line with the new Joining Forces initiative, launched by First Lady Michelle Obama and Jill Biden to raise awareness around the challenges that military personnel and their spouses endure when moving from one community to another.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — Mass merchandiser Kmart had sales of $4.99 billion during fourth quarter 2010 and $15.6 billion for the year as a whole, according to an earnings statement released Thursday by parent company Sears Holdings.

The sales for the quarter, which ended Jan. 29, were a slight improvement over fourth quarter 2009 sales of $4.92 billion, while the annual sales represented a decline in dollar terms from 2009’s $15.74 billion. Comparable-store sales for the year increased in percentage terms, by 0.7%, while quarterly sales increased by 2.5%.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — Fast on the heels of her departure from Ahold USA’s Giant Foods of Landover supermarket unit, Robin Michel has been tapped for an increasingly critical role at retail giant Sears Holdings. Michel, who left as president of Giant-Landover in December 2010, will serve as SVP and president of food and consumables, health and beauty and pharmacy at Sears and its Kmart subsidiary.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — A 2.3% same-store sales gain at Kmart was not enough to offset a 6% decline at Sears, resulting in an overall 1.7% decline for the combined companies' domestic operations during the five-week December reporting period ended Jan. 1.

LAS VEGAS — With the Consumer Electronics Show approaching, Sears is launching a social media initiative designed to give bloggers early access to consumer electronics information and provide readers with the latest technology news.

NEW YORK — Walmart had high Web traffic numbers for the week ended Nov. 27, which included Thanksgiving and Black Friday, according to data released from Experian Hitwise.

The big-box retailer topped the list at 25.88% of all Web traffic, or 88 million visits, with Target ranking second at 15.26%, or 51.8 million visits.

Meanwhile, Sears.com accounted for 6.21% of multichannel Web traffic, or 21.1 million visits for the week, just under JCPenney at 21.5 million visits, or 6.34% of total Web traffic.