Lampert unveils plan for smaller Sears stores

Lampert, the hedge-fund manager whose rescue plan for Sears was approved by a bankruptcy judge this week, says the new stores will measure about 62,000 square feet, one-third the size of the originals, The Wall Street Journal reports. The restructured company, which is still unnamed, will operate 223 Sears stores and 202 Kmarts, some of which will be sold or subleased. The company also includes Sears Auto Centers, Sears Home Services, and Innovel Solutions, which operates warehouses and delivers appliances.

“It would be very difficult to keep all 425 stores open,” Lampert told the newspaper. “We would like to maintain a presence in at least the stores that we’re in. That may be in a different location in the mall, if we were to sell the store, or sell and [then] lease back part of the store.”

Much depends on mall landlords, Lampert says. “The mall owners are very influential,” he said. “They were not rooting for the company to emerge from bankruptcy.”

Lampert says he will remain the company’s chairman but appoint a CEO to carry out his plan.