Sears Canada pulling furniture from 26 mall stores
By Michael J. Knell -- Furniture Today, March 23, 2003
Toronto — Sears Canada will pull furniture from 26 mall-based department stores over the next few months to make way for more apparel and soft home fashions, including the debut of Martha Stewart Everyday.
However, the department store will launch several initiatives in the coming weeks to protect and enhance its position as Canada's largest furniture and bedding retailer. Sears Canada had estimated 2001 furniture and bedding sales of C$684 million.
According to Bruce Watton, national business manager/furniture, the transition will be complete by the end of summer. Furniture will remain in about 14 of the 123 mall-based department stores, down from the current 40.
The category will be pulled only from stores that share a market with a freestanding Sears Furniture & Appliance store.
"We also will be leaving a bedding aisle in all of those stores as well," Watton said, adding the loss of the real estate shouldn't hurt the category's performance this year. "We are not abdicating our responsibilities to our customers — furniture is going to continue to be available through all of our channels of distribution," he said.
The typical department store furniture presentation covers an average of 7,000 square feet of selling space.
In addition to mall-based department stores, furniture and bedding is sold through 45 freestanding furniture and appliance stores, a network of independent dealer stores across the country, and through Canada's only general merchandise catalog.
Sears expects to build at least three new furniture and appliance stores this year, although it could be as many as seven if suitable locations can be secured.
"We are waiting on a number of lease deals," Watton said. "So the growth path that the furniture and appliance stores have been on for the past couple of years will continue."
Although no firm plans have been set, the company also is researching a smaller-format furniture and appliance store for secondary markets in which Sears doesn't currently have a strong presence in furniture.
This would be in addition to expanding the existing network of independently owned dealer stores, of which there are 10 across the country.
Furniture and bedding also has been getting an increased share of Sears Canada's advertising efforts in the catalog and on television.
This year, furniture and bedding will be featured on more than 600 catalog pages, the most ever.
As part of its 50th anniversary campaign, Sears Canada has featured both the category and the stores in a series of TV commercials.
"This year, the company has moved its advertising emphasis from print to electronic media," Watton said.
Sears also is making significant changes in its product line. Next week, it officially will launch its chain-wide Natuzzi leather gallery. In May, it will add dining room to its Your Space Your Style private-label brand with nine groups in two new collections.
In June, the retailer will re-launch Sklar Peppler as a brand in its upholstery offerings. Watton described this effort as a "soft gallery," meaning Sears will promote Sklar, perhaps the best-known furniture brand in Canada, but won't present it in a strict gallery format.
While adding Martha Stewart Everyday soft goods, Sears doesn't plan to carry the Martha Stewart Home furniture line by Bernhardt.
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