5 Florida Kmart/Sears Stores To Close In December 2019

FLORIDA — Two Kmart and three Sears stores in Florida are scheduled to close by the end of 2019, according to multiple reports. The company has not yet released an official list of the locations to close, but multiple news outlets have reported that stores in Miami and Jacksonville are among those on the list.

USA Today reported the list of store closings. The five newest Florida store closures are:

• Jacksonville Sears: 10302 Southside Blvd.
• Leesburg Sears: 10401 Us Highway 441
• Miami Kmart: 3825 7th Street NW
• Oviedo Sears: 1360 Oviedo Marketplace Blvd.
• Vero Beach Kmart: 1501 US 1

Liquidation sales for the latest round of stores to close are set to begin in mid-September, Kmart PR Director Larry Costello confirmed in a statement.

"We encourage customers to continue shopping on Kmart.com for all their product needs," he said.

A number of Sears and Kmart stores also have closed in recent years as the company has struggled to survive. The closings come after a last-minute reprieve saved Sears Holdings, which owns Kmart, from liquidation.

In a recent message to shareholders, Sears said, "We have made the difficult but necessary decision to close 26 large-format Sears and Kmart stores (across the country)."

Brick-and-mortar stores continue to struggle to increase online sales in what analysts have dubbed the retail apocalypse. The beloved chain Toys R Us was likely the most high-profile retail closure in 2018, but it's just one of many stores that you won't be seeing in 2019. In August 2019, Avenue, a plus-size women's clothing store, said it is closing all of its U.S. locations, including its 14 locations in Florida.

Sears filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in October 2018, announcing it would close 142 unprofitable locations.

SEE ALSO:

• Another National Retailer Closing 21 Florida Stores
• 30 Women's Clothing Stores Closing In Florida
• CVS Closes 4 Florida Stores, Other Underperforming Locations