Sears and KMart closings

[salmoned]

Re: Sears and KMart closings

Ridiculous. Businesses need to attract customers, that's the only thing that'll keep 'em in business. I stood in line today at the Oahu noodle shop in Kalihi on King St. As usual, they were doing a brisk business with no counter at the front door, noodle making machines running full out. Pancit was sold out before noon.

[Ron Whitfield]

Re: Sears and KMart closings

WTF does Obama have to do with a lack of business in Hawaii? Empty properties were happening big time prior to him.

[matapule]

Re: Sears and KMart closings

Is this Obama's "Change?" If so, it looks like spare change, and yes, I'll take some, thank you.

HuH? If any President should take the fall for the current economic conditions, it is Dubya! The economy is actually improving under Obama. What more would you have him do? He has a Congress whose Teapublican majority has stated their primary interest is to bring him down rather than improve the conditions in the economy. A pox on Teapublican politicians!

There's goona be a revolution.... umhmmmm....

Yes! Throw the Teapublican scurvy out of office. Vote Green Party!

When will we be fed up enough? What will it take?

I got fed up enough with your line of misinformed postings a long time ago. I have no idea what it will take to make you understand that.

ALLEG$EDLY:

"Here's a quick look into the Three former Fannie Mae executives who
brought down Wall Street.

SO.................WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

FRANKLIN RAINES? Raines works for the Obama Campaign as his Chief
Economic Advisor.

TIM HOWARD? Howard is a Chief Economic Advisor to Obama under
Franklin Raines.

JIM JOHNSON? Johnson was hired as a Senior Obama Finance Advisor and
was selected to run Obama's Vice Presidential Search Committee."

This is all anecdotal. I have no proof of these claims, but I don't doubt them.

Contemporary American government, rotton to the core?????

BULLPUCKY! You don't even show common coutesy to HT members by researching your own TeaBagger postings. Here is the real scoop on your mindless trolling of HT. This bogus email has been circulating since Spetember, 2008, when McCain tried to use it against Obama during the Presidential campaign. McCain pulled the ad when it was determined that it was totally false.

HT moderators should ban members who consistently post false, misleading, unresearched, and verbatim quotations that have no basis in fact and then try to hijack threads. Where is the intellect in posting something that is "allegedly" or I have no proof"? There is no integrity in copying and posting every BS email that arrives in your mailbox.

[Frankie's Market]

Re: Sears and KMart closings

What this economy needs to do is stop excessive regulation and overtaxation in order to keep old and small buisnesses alive. Way too much regulations and taxation.

IMO, the decline of traditional department store chains can't be pinned on govt. regulation. Let's get real! People's buying habits have changed. Instead of shopping at traditional department stores, consumers are buying more goods from big-box retailers, membership-only discounters, and of course, e-commerce.

That Woolworths is long gone while Sears is on the decline has nothing to do with govt. and taxes. Retailers who fail to adapt to the changing marketplace are doomed to fail. And there's nothing that politicians can do about that.

[matapule]

Re: Sears and KMart closings

What this economy needs to do is stop excessive regulation and overtaxation in order to keep old and small buisnesses alive. Way too much regulations and taxation.

How many small businesses have you owned? I have started, capitalized, and operated 5 small businesses over the years. Your assertion is totally false. Taxation has never been lower in 60 years and regulations are to protect the public "health, safety, and welfare"......as a result of businesses failing to self regulate and act responsibly.

Businesses fail because they fail to meet consumer needs in the marketplace. Sears is a perfect example. Sears makes some very good products but consumers will not put up with store venues that are outdated, lack of aggressive marketing, poorly trained sales personnel, bad business decisions by upper level management, and failure to meet market needs.

Case in point: I contacted Sears in response to an ad seeking entrepreneurs to open local Sears franchise stores about 6 months ago. I had difficulty getting them to respond to me or provide me with written materials. When they did, they offered a 30% profit margin on products sold. The franchise owner would pay all expenses - advertising, staff salaries, rent, overhead, etc. The result is that the franchise owner would make (according to Sears own pro-forma statements) about 40K to 50K annually for a minimum of 70 hours of work a week, taking all financial risks, and return on investment of an "up front" cost of about 100K. That business model just does not make sense for the investor. I respectfully declined to invest my money with Sears. There is a sucker born minute and I try to avoide being one of them. No wonder Sears is on the verge of bankruptcy. It has nothing to do with overtaxation and over regulation. Sears used to be a good retailer but those days are long gone as a result of self destruction.

[Leo Lakio]

Re: Sears and KMart closings

IMO, the decline of traditional department store chains can't be pinned on govt. regulation. Let's get real! People's buying habits have changed. Instead of shopping at traditional department stores, consumers are buying more goods from big-box retailers, membership-only discounters, and of course, e-commerce.

On. The. Mark.

Because the majority of American shoppers want the lowest price they can get for a product. Period.

Is that a bad thing? Seems sensible to want to pay the least amount of our limited and hard-earned dollars for our purchases.

However, the problem is that many shoppers stop with the item's ticket price, and think that's the "cost," plain and simple. They fail to recognize that the way certain retailers operate (I'm looking at you first, Mal-Wart!) end up damaging the economic structure of America with their practices - and consumers end up paying hidden costs. We're seeing the effects all over the nation and the world right now (and you are a fool if you don't see it).

[D'Alani]

Re: Sears and KMart closings

Wigwam was there??? I don't remember that. What is now the City Square building used to be a GEMS department store, along with Jolly Rogers restaurant.
I don't recall a Jolly Rogers rearaurant in Kalihi but there was a Jolly Roger drive in across from Kalihi Kai school where I think is now Car Quest?
I believe the first Wigwam location in Kalihi was where Marukai is now.




Noooo. This isn't true. There were only 2 skyslides. The ones in Mapunapuna and Waipahu.[/quote]
Yes there was a skyslide on the ewa side of the parking lot where Tesoro and Popeye's is now.

[joshuatree]

Re: Sears and KMart closings

How many small businesses have you owned? I have started, capitalized, and operated 5 small businesses over the years. Your assertion is totally false. Taxation has never been lower in 60 years and regulations are to protect the public "health, safety, and welfare"......as a result of businesses failing to self regulate and act responsibly.

Businesses fail because they fail to meet consumer needs in the marketplace. Sears is a perfect example. Sears makes some very good products but consumers will not put up with store venues that are outdated, lack of aggressive marketing, poorly trained sales personnel, bad business decisions by upper level management, and failure to meet market needs....

I concur, it's so easy to discuss taxation in one broad stroke but large corporations have so many tax loopholes, it's absurd. They need to pay more of their share. On the other end of the spectrum, we need to cut back on excessive welfare. What we lack these days is common sense but I'm just preaching to the choir.

Sears should have never bought K-mart and kept Discover card. Bad CEOs run businesses into the ground. These days, I'm not sure if there is anything Sears can do to right the ship up. Perhaps fall back more on their original business model of catalog sales, well actually internet now. But the likes of Amazon will crush that too. Unless maybe if they focus on their Craftsmen and Kenmore lines and sell that online. I don't see how they offer anything better in clothing, jewelry, shoes, etc. They still seem to have nice with affordable automotive tools. They should reduce their number of brick and mortar stores. Just even relinquishing their anchor spot in AMC and choosing a smaller space would save op costs as an example.

[matapule]

Re: Sears and KMart closings

Perhaps fall back more on their original business model of catalog sales, well actually internet now. But the likes of Amazon will crush that too. .

EXACTLY!

Who does REI consider their biggest competitor?

AMAZON! not excessive reguation and taxation.

[Kimo]

Re: Sears and KMart closings

D'Alani beat me to it . . . Wigwam on Dillingham was down where Marukai is, just down the road from the Schuman Used Cars place with the revolving sign. . . across from what used to be Gaspro.

[Frankie's Market]

Re: Sears and KMart closings

Wigwam was there??? I don't remember that. What is now the City Square building used to be a GEMS department store, along with Jolly Rogers restaurant.
I don't recall a Jolly Rogers rearaurant in Kalihi but there was a Jolly Roger drive in across from Kalihi Kai school where I think is now Car Quest?

There was definitely a Jolly Rogers at the old Kapalama GEMS. It was located to the left of the store's front entrance. Ate many Beefy Boys & Cheesy Gals there when it was open.

Yes there was a skyslide on the ewa side of the parking lot where Tesoro and Popeye's is now.

Well, that's not located next to what is City Square today (Dillingham & Kohou Streets). But I'll take your word for it that there was a skyslide further down Dillingham at the block you described.

Hmmm, wonder if the skyslide was there when my mother first came to Hawaii and lived at Holiday Gardens.

[lensperson]

Re: Sears and KMart closings

Up here in the far northwest , there was a Wigwam on the edge of Redmond.
I got my first telephoto lens there, a Vivitar 135mm 3.5 preset with
T mount.
My camera at the time was an Exa500.
Great little camera, it's still working!