The Sears store at 600 South University will close in July, Sears announced today, along with 68 Kmart and nine other Sears stores. There are no other stores in Arkansas on the list. Said the release:
Today’s announcement follows a comprehensive evaluation of the company’s store portfolio that took into account historical and recent store performance, and the timing of lease expirations. All of the Sears stores and nearly all of the Kmart stores will close in late July; two Kmart stores will close in mid-September.
Liquidation sales at the Sears stores begin April 29.
It’s deathly quiet whenever I visit the store. It has been there for decades, moving with many other retailers when Main Street Little Rock started decaying as a center of retail. University has enjoyed some resurgence in recent years, but the Sears property has not enjoyed much of the fallout. The property has been mentioned in recent years as a potential location for a car dealership and, at one time, for the Little Rock Tech Park. The Tech Park wound up on — irony — Main Street.
Sears still has a store at McCain Mall in North Little Rock.