Sears, Roebuck & Co., the battered but longstanding retailer, got a cash infusion Thursday that it hopes will help stave off store closings and stabilize its finances.
But it will be too late for at least one Maine affiliate. The Kmart in Bangor is expected to close this coming spring, according to a statement from the company.
“We can confirm that we are making the difficult but necessary decision to close the Kmart store at 688 Hogan Road in Bangor,” Kmart spokesman Howard Riefs said in a prepared statement. The store, which he described as unprofitable, is expected to close in March and liquidation sales will start Jan. 6.
Sears Holdings Corp., the corporate parent of Sears and Kmart stores, said Thursday it received a letter of credit for $200 million from a group of investors under ESL Investments Inc. Terms of the deal allow the credit to be expanded to $500 million if the lenders agree.
The letter of credit “demonstrates that Sears Holdings has numerous options to finance our business strategy,” said Jason M. Hollar, Sears Holdings’ chief financial officer, in a release announcing the deal. The corporation operates more than 1,500 stores nationwide.
The credit financing is being arranged through Sears CEO Edward Lampert, who manages the ESL Investments hedge fund. Lampert orchestrated the merger of Sears and Kmart in 2005 and has already loaned the holding company more than $800 million to revive the flagging retail chains.
Sears, a 123-year-old retailer, lost $9 billion over the last eight years, and has been shedding underperforming stores, including 200 in this fiscal year. Business Insider reported this week that 23 Kmart stores and seven Sears stores will close in early 2017. No Maine or New Hampshire stores were listed.
Riefs said the number of workers affected by the Bangor closure was not available, but that they would be eligible to receive severance packages and to apply for work at other Kmart or Sears stores.
Kmart operates five stores in Maine, according to its website. They are in Auburn, Augusta, Bangor, Madawaska and Waterville. Last year it closed a store in Presque Isle.
Sears operates regular department stores in Augusta, Bangor, Brunswick and South Portland and its smaller “Hometown” stores in Belfast, Biddeford, Caribou, Ellsworth, Farmington, Fort Kent, Houlton, Newport and Windham.
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