Sears Holdings, the parent company of mass merchandiser Kmart, is throwing its support behind a bill that would grant states authority to enforce existing sales tax laws and require out-of-state online retailers to collect and remit sales taxes on sales made to their residents.
Sears Holdings, the parent company of Kmart, posted a 3.7% decline in same-store sales and a $132 million loss for second quarter 2012, according to financial results announced Thursday.
"Integrated retail" was the dominant theme as executives discussed Kmart operator Sears Holdings' plans to restore confidence in the company after a fourth quarter 2011 that even the company's chief executive called "unacceptable" during an earnings call Thursday.
Kmart is boosting its Shop Your Way Rewards program by offering members the opportunity to earn $50 in points to put toward their January 2012 Kmart purchases.
With the holiday season just around the corner, Sears Holdings is aiming to make shopping more rewarding by offering five times the Shop Your Way Rewards points — equal to 5% back — on all qualifying purchases.
Kmart comparable-store sales were flat, and Sears U.S. sales declined by 1.2% during second quarter 2011, according to an earnings report released Thursday.
Mass merchandiser Kmart had sales of $4.99 billion during fourth quarter 2010 and $15.6 billion for the year as a whole, according to an earnings statement released Thursday by parent company Sears Holdings.
A 2.3% same-store sales gain at Kmart was not enough to offset a 6% decline at Sears, resulting in an overall 1.7% decline for the combined companies' domestic operations during the five-week December reporting period ended Jan. 1.