Sears Holdings Corporation Strategic Plan
Sears Holdings Corporation is a company that came from two very well known organizations, Sears and Kmart. Both companies go back even farther than the 1900s and unfortunately both companies experienced financial difficulty at one point. With the merger Sears Holdings Corporation has the experience of both organizations as well as their different style of operating. Along with an improved customer base and a new outlook Sears Holdings Corporation is experiencing financial growth.
Richard W. Sears was an agent at a railway station. This job provided him with loads of free time, so he would sell lumber and coal to local residents for extra money. During his employment with the railway station he came across some discarded watches and decided to repair and sell them. He made a good profit and decided to try it again. In 1886 Sears began the R.W. Sears Watch Company in Minneapolis. After moving his business to Chicago, IL Sears advertised for a watchmaker and came across Alvah C. Roebuck who claimed to do excellent work. In 1893 Sears Roebuck and Co. was formed. Adapting the motto, “Shop at Sears and Save” Sears quickly became the place where farmers shopped to save money and cut out the middleman. Sears’s prices were much cheaper than rural stores. By 1895 Sears was producing a 532-page catalog with many other items, such as stoves, women’s clothing, wagons, furniture, china, firearms, glassware and baby carriages etc. “Sales in 1893 topped $400,000 and two years later they exceeded $750,000” (http://www.searsarchives.com/index.htm). Roebuck had left the company due to an illness, but Sears continued to use his name. In recent years Sears is best known for its Craftsman tools and Kenmore appliances. “As of 2002 Sears was one of the nations largest retailers with $41 billion in revenue and 870 full line stores. Sears is also the nation's fourth largest jewelry retailer, with nearly $1 billion in total annual jewelry sales” (http://www.allbusiness.com/).
Richard W. Sears was an agent at a railway station. This job provided him with loads of free time, so he would sell lumber and coal to local residents for extra money. During his employment with the railway station he came across some discarded watches and decided to repair and sell them. He made a good profit and decided to try it again. In 1886 Sears began the R.W. Sears Watch Company in Minneapolis. After moving his business to Chicago, IL Sears advertised for a watchmaker and came across Alvah C. Roebuck who claimed to do excellent work. In 1893 Sears Roebuck and Co. was formed. Adapting the motto, “Shop at Sears and Save” Sears quickly became the place where farmers shopped to save money and cut out the middleman. Sears’s prices were much cheaper than rural stores. By 1895 Sears was producing a 532-page catalog with many other items, such as stoves, women’s clothing, wagons, furniture, china, firearms, glassware and baby carriages etc. “Sales in 1893 topped $400,000 and two years later they exceeded $750,000” (http://www.searsarchives.com/index.htm). Roebuck had left the company due to an illness, but Sears continued to use his name. In recent years Sears is best known for its Craftsman tools and Kenmore appliances. “As of 2002 Sears was one of the nations largest retailers with $41 billion in revenue and 870 full line stores. Sears is also the nation's fourth largest jewelry retailer, with nearly $1 billion in total annual jewelry sales” (http://www.allbusiness.com/).