Rebrand or Go Home
This
week, I had the opportunity to read a tragic article about the company Sears
and how it is almost to the point of filing for bankruptcy. Sears is a
125-year-old company, so it does seem to come as a shock that a business this
established is coming to such a tragic end. The article goes over and
highlights some of the main points as to why the company is failing as a whole
and on its way to a downward spiral.
Sears purchased the
company Kmart because it was going to need to file for bankruptcy. This was a
bad move because they only added to their problem instead of fixing Sears
before tackling another project. They tried to make some changes, but they were
not putting as much time, effort, and money into their advancements as their
competitors were.
Sears was purchased by
Eddie Lampert. He purchased Kmart and then Sears in 2004 and 2005. He then
tried to merge them, and that is where things started to snowball in a bad way.
Two failing companies being forced to become one was not what they needed. The
number of stores has decreased, and sales have never really increased as well.
Lampert cut a lot of the essentials that were needed and were helping to keep
Sears alive. The last real year that Sears had any profit in was in 2010. It
has almost been a decade ago.Lampert was never involved in retail until he
purchased Kmart. He was in finance. Some think that this is another reason why
he helped to drive Sears into the ground.
One major problem with a
brand this old is that it never underwent a facelift. When I say this, I mean
the brand never updated their image. New images help bring attention to the
company. With a company that is over 100 years old, a new image would have
brought more attention to it for some of the public that may have never shopped
at Sears, heard of Sears, or maybe just stopped shopping there because they
didn’t have anything new or exciting worth purchasing anymore. Many companies
go through rebranding. It is a significant part of the process of owning and
operating a business.
People are always looking
for the next new and exciting thing. When you shop, you don’t want to look at
the same shirt that has been in the store for a month now. You want to look at
the new shirts because it is something you haven’t seen before and you need to
find out if you like them or not. You try new restaurants because you don’t
always want to eat at the same place every week. The same thing goes for
companies. You need to update your image to be able to catch the eye of your
potential and current consumers.
When I think of Sears and other companies that have gone under in recent years, I think of the saying "adapt or die." The golden age for department stores is over, but not all department stores are filing for bankruptcy. Nordstrom, for example has done a good job of moving commerce online and keeping a fresh brand image. It's sad that the future of Sears is bleak, but from what I learned in your post, it could have been prevented.
ReplyDeleteI honestly didn't know the tragic backstory behind the Sears and K-Mart. It feels almost like the end of an era, but it makes sense. When you look at other brands, it's clear that Sears did not adapt to the age of media, particularly online social media. RIP
ReplyDeleteI didn't think of it until I read this blog, but now I realize that Sears never updated thier image. I think even in hard times, Sears should put an effort to go through rebrand. But, when I think through, it is rare to find the people around me who choose Sears as the most favorite brand. What I can say is that Sears is unfortunate.
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