Sears Holdings Corp. said Thursday that it will close 28 additional Kmart stores nationwide as the retailer continues to struggle with declining sales.
All 28 of the stores, except one in Florida, will close in mid-November, with liquidation sales coming as early as the end of this month, the Hoffman Estates, Ill.-based retailer said in a statement.
Eligible employees affected by the store closings will receive severance pay and be eligible to apply to open positions at other Kmart or Sears locations.
The company said it will continue to "transform" its business model so the number of its physical stores, as well as its online presence, matches shoppers' needs and preferences.
Already, Sears has closed 180 stores this year. An additional 150 stores that were slated for closing are to shut by the end of next quarter.
The news of new closings came as Sears reported its second-quarter earnings.
The company reported Thursday that its second-quarter loss narrowed to $251 million. Revenue fell 23 percent, to $4.37 billion.
Sales at stores open at least a year, a key measure of a retailer's health, dropped 11.5 percent. At Kmart, the measure dropped 9.4 percent, while at Sears stores, the figure was down 13.2 percent.
