Will Cambridge Sears Close? Not In This Round Of Closings

CAMBRIDGE, MA — Could the Cambridgeside Sears be a thing of the past? Sears is closing at least 72 more locations across the country, including two in the Commonwealth. Thursday's announcement follows the announced closing of more than 100 stores earlier this year.

The Cambridgeside Sears, which is the closest to Boston, hasn't gotten good reviews on Google over the past few years. A quick search shows that out of 53 reviews it has a rating of 2.5 stars of 5. Customers said they had trouble finding staff members for help, had long phone waits when they ran into trouble and if there was a mistake in the order, they wouldn't be compensated for it.

But the Cambridgeside Galleria Sears will live another day. According to today's announcement Peabody and Springfield Sears are the only Sears affected in this round of closings.

Sears stores in the Burlington Mall and Berkshire Mall announced they would close earlier this year. There are only 15 Sears stores locations - not including appliance outlets or auto centers - left in Massachusetts, including Cambridgeside.

"As part of our ongoing efforts to streamline the Company's operations and focus on our Best Stores, we have identified approximately 100 non-profitable stores, 72 of which will begin store closing sales in the near future," the Illinois-based company said in a statement. "We continue to evaluate our network of stores, which are a critical component in our transformation, and will make further adjustments as needed and as warranted."

Sears reported a net loss of $424 million during the first quarter of 2018. During the first quarter last year, Sears saw earnings of $245 million, but that was in part because of a $492 million gain related to the sale of the Craftsman brand.

"In a challenging quarter, we continued to focus on our strategic transformation, identifying additional opportunities to streamline operations and adjust inventory and operating expenses while staying focused on our Best Members, Best Categories and Best Stores," Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Holdings Edward S. Lampert said in a statement.

Read more here: Sears To Shutter 70 More Stores

Image via Google Maps Screen grab.