In its ongoing effort to remain a going concern, TransformCo, current owner of both Sears and Kmart, reportedly plans to close an additional 39 stores, including one Sears store in Georgia, according to a report by USA Today. ToNeTo Atlanta confirmed the planned Georgia closure is at Augusta Mall in Augusta, with an associate at the store indicating that liquidation sales are slated to begin Tuesday, February 11 and run though April 12, or until all merchandise is sold.
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| Photo courtesy of SkyCity2.blogspot.com |
Augusta Mall, developed by renowned mall developer The Rouse Company, opened in 1978 with just two anchors: Rich's and Davison's. A JCPenney was added in 1987, followed by Sears in 1990. Today the mall is owned by Brookfield Properties and is anchored by JCPenney, Macy's, Sears, Dillard's and Dick's Sporting Goods.
TransformCo, the company formed in January 2019 to buy the remaining assets of bankrupt retailer Sears Holdings Corp., announced plans in November to close an additional 96 stores by early 2020. The closures - 51 Sears and 45 Kmart stores - will take place by late February with going-out-of-business sales currently in progress.
In metro Atlanta, where in recent years Sears has shuttered stores at Cumberland Mall, North Point Mall, Northlake Mall and Gwinnett Place Mall, among others, the retailer is actively closing at Arbor Place Mall in Douglasville. Sears, one of five anchors at the mall, opened with the mall in 1999. The closure of the Sears will leave Arbor Place with four anchors: JCPenney, Macy's, Dillard's and Belk (in the former Parisian).
Recent closures have left Georgia with zero operating Kmart stores and soon, just one operating full-line Sears store: Town Center at Cobb in Kennesaw. Several former Atlanta area Sears stores have been reborn as popular attractions.
The site of the former Buckhead area Sears is today home to the St. Regis Atlanta, while the former Sears store, offices and warehouse along Ponce de Leon Avenue in Old Fourth Ward was reborn as Ponce City Market.
Former Sears stores at Northlake Mall in Tucker, Cumberland Mall in Smyrna and North Point Mall in Alpharetta are all slated for re-purposing.
ToNeTo Atlanta announced October 24, 2019 that Emory Healthcare will open a new campus in the former Sears store in Northlake as well as a portion of the mall itself. This past summer we exclusively reported that Round1 and Dick's Sporting Goods/Golf Galaxy will headline the replacements planned for the Sears at Cumberland Mall. The Sears store at North Point Mall is slated to be demolished and rebuilt as "The Point," a mixed-use project with multifamily, retail, restaurant, and small parks and trails.
Are you sad to see so many Sears stores close? What is your favorite department store? What would you like to see open in place of the Sears at Arbor Place Mall?
Please share your thoughts below.