Sears Canada Names Cohen Chief Executive Officer

Sears Canada appointed Mark A. Cohen, 52, chairman and chief executive officer at a meeting of the board of directors held here today. Cohen succeeds Paul Walters who has decided to pursue opportunities outside the company.

Cohen is currently president of softlines and chief marketing officer for Sears, Roebuck and Co., a position he has held since September 1999.

"I would like to thank Paul for his outstanding contribution to Sears Canada, including the successful relaunch of eatons," said Alan J. Lacy, chairman and chief executive officer of Sears, Roebuck and Co. "Through his leadership, Sears Canada has achieved tremendous growth and success during the four years he has led the company. We owe a great debt to Paul for his vision, drive and success. We look forward to the future, with Sears and eatons playing a pre-eminent role on the Canadian retail scene.

"I am pleased that in Mark Cohen we have an experienced retail executive who shares the company's commitment to the continued growth of Sears Canada," Lacy said. "Mark is both a strong retail executive and a superb merchant. His skills are well suited to the challenges of growing our Sears and eatons franchises."

"My tenure at Sears Canada has been an exciting and fulfilling time for me," said Walters. "Over the past few years, I have helped to build a solid platform for growth, and I believe we have a very strong management team in place. I wish Mark well as he leads the company into the next phase of its development."

"Sears Canada offers tremendous growth opportunities through its retail, catalogue, on-line and off-mall formats," said Cohen. "I am certainly impressed by the quality of its people and operations, and look forward to beginning my new position."

A successor to fill Cohen's position at Sears, Roebuck and Co. has not been named.

Cohen has nearly 30 years' experience in merchandising, marketing and retail management. He joined Sears in January 1998 to direct the merchandising of several key softlines categories including accessories, cosmetics, fine jewelry, home fashions and footwear. Previously, Cohen served as chairman and chief executive officer of Bradlees, a position he held from 1994 to 1997. From 1987 to 1994, Cohen was with Federated Department Stores where he was president of Goldsmith's and chairman and chief executive officer of Lazarus. His extensive retail background also includes positions at Dayton Hudson Corp., now named Target Corp.; Abraham & Strauss; Lord & Taylor; and The Gap. Cohen holds MBA and bachelor of science degrees from Columbia University.

Sears Canada Inc. is Canada's largest full-line retailer of general merchandise and home-related services, operating a retail network that includes 116 full-line, full-service retail department stores, a variety of specialized retail outlets, and more than 2,000 catalogue selling locations. The company also operates Canada's only general merchandise catalog. In late 1999, Sears Canada acquired the eatons name, 19 eatons store locations and its Web site. In November 2000, Sears Canada reopened seven of the locations that retain the eatons name after extensive remodeling and remerchandising. The company also serves Canadian customers through its Web sites, http://www.sears.ca/ and eatons.com . Its 2000 revenue was nearly $6.4 billion (Cdn.).

Sears, Roebuck and Co., (NYSE: S) with headquarters in Hoffman Estates, Ill., is a leading U.S. retailer of apparel, home and automotive products and services, with annual revenue of more than $40 billion (U.S.). The company serves families throughout the country through approximately 860 full-line department stores, nearly 2,100 specialized retail outlets and a variety of offerings accessible through the company's Web site, www.sears.com . Sears, Roebuck and Co. is the majority owner of Sears Canada Inc.

SOURCE: Sears, Roebuck & Co.

Contact: Christine Hudson of Sears Canada Inc., 416-941-4423, or Peggy
Palter of Sears, Roebuck and Co., 847-286-8361

Website: http://www.eatons.com/

Website: http://www.sears.ca/

Website: http://www.sears.com/