Sears Holdings Corp. on Thursday identified 79 of the full-line Sears and Kmart stores it plans to close. The Hoffman Estates-based company announced Tuesday it would shutter between 100 and 120 stores to deal with sagging sales.
None of the Sears and Kmart stores in the initial list are in Illinois, and the list does not specify closing dates or number of employees who will be impacted.
"Employment varies by store and format and at this time we cannot provide the total number of impacted associates," Sears said in a release on its site.
Two weeks ago Gov. Pat Quinn signed hundreds of thousands of dollars in tax breaks to keep the company in Illinois. Previously Sears and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange threatened to leave the state without the measures lawmakers adopted on Dec. 12 and 13.
Sears Holdings said this week the closures are expected to generate $140 million to $170 million in sold inventory and additional proceeds from the lease or sale of the buildings.
No date was given for the release of additional stores to be closed.
