Golf Mill Sears to close
The Sears department store at Golf Mill in Niles will close, with layoffs beginning in December.
Hoffman Estates-based Sears notified the state last week of the closure and will lay off 75 employees beginning Dec. 16, according to a WARN report. Businesses file WARN reports to give the state advance notice of layoffs.
Continuing the decline of what was once the country's largest retailer, the company during the summer announced plans to close 72 stores, including Sears at Hawthorn Center in Vernon Hills, Fox Valley Center in Aurora and Gurnee Mills.
A Sears store reopened this week at Oakbrook Center, occupying just the lower level and one-third of the footprint of the former store and focusing on specific goods, including shoes, apparel, appliances, tools, mattresses, sporting goods, grills and lawn and garden items.
Following years of crippling sales declines at Sears, CEO Eddie Lampert and his hedge fund ESL Investments recently proposed restructuring debt to stave off bankruptcy.