Sears to Open Full-Line Department Store in Wasilla
The first full-line Sears department store in Wasilla will open this fall, offering a wide variety of merchandise showcased on a sales floor of approximately 70,000 sq. ft., nearly five times the size of the existing Sears store.
Located at the intersection of Seward Meridian and Parks Highway in a building that formerly housed a Wal-Mart, the new store will replace Sears much smaller, existing store at 595 E. Parks Highway. That store, with a sales floor of 15,000 sq. ft., carries only appliances, a small assortment of home improvement merchandise and some home electronics.
"Bringing the latest in Sears terrific brands and shopping convenience to consumers throughout the Mat-Su Valley is an exciting project for us," said David Ikkala, Sears district manager for Alaska. "We look forward to the opportunity to earn the position of favorite home town retailer as we unveil expanded assortments of the products we already carry as well as many offerings previously unavailable in Wasilla."
The new Sears will highlight apparel for men, women and children, including national brands as well as Sears own clothing lines: Crossroads, Canyon River Blues, Apostrophe and Fieldmaster. Home fashions, fine jewelry and fragrances will be available. The store also will offer a broad selection of appliances, including the well-known Kenmore and Kenmore Elite brands. In electronics, customers will find a variety of popular brands of TVs and stereos, an assortment of digital cameras and more.
Home improvement enthusiasts will enjoy the hardware/tool department, highlighting famous Craftsman tools as well as other popular brands.
In addition, customers will enjoy the convenience of Sears Gift Registry, Sears Portrait Studio and Sears Optical shop. Combination shopping carts/strollers will be available for use in the store. Approximately 100 employees will staff the new store, up from the 30 employed at the current location.
The Wasilla Sears is one of 10 department stores that Sears will open nationwide in 2001.
Sears, Roebuck and Co. is a leading U.S. retailer of apparel, home and automotive products and services, with annual revenue of more than $40 billion. The company serves families throughout the country through approximately 860 department stores, more than 2,100 specialized retail locations, and a variety of online offerings accessible through the company's Web site, http://www.sears.com/ .
SOURCE: Sears Roebuck & Co.
Contact: Media, Janice R. Drummond of Sears, 847-286-8316
Website: http://www.sears.com/