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Sears closes Forsyth mall location [Herald & Review, Decatur, Ill.](Herald & Review (Decatur, IL) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Sept. 19--FORSYTH -- A second anchor spot at Hickory Point Mall in Forsyth will soon be left empty as Sears announced plans Thursday to close its location there in early December. The Sears store and auto center will remain open for customers until then with a liquidation sale set to begin Sept. 26, spokesman Howard Riefs said. With Sears planning to close, mall owner CBL Properties is looking for a retailer of comparable size to fill the space, said Sean Phillips, CBL's regional marketing director. Additionally, the J.C. Penney store at the mall in Forsyth was one of 33 locations in that chain which closed earlier this year. "We're constantly evaluating all our opportunities," Phillips said. "We have things in the works. This is an opportunity to redevelop the locations." Phillips said that while it is too early to release plans to replace the Sears space, an agreement is being finalized to fill the former J.C. Penney space. An announcement could come within the next few weeks, he said. The mall has had some recent success in filling smaller spaces with what Phillips said are considered junior department stores. An ULTA Beauty store opened earlier this month, and a Ross Dress for Less is under construction next to it. Phillips said the mall also has recently added new options for family and children's shopping with Justice and The Children's Place. "We have a lot of interest in Hickory Point Mall," Phillips said. "By adding more stores like those, we hope shoppers will visit more often." Even with the latest additions, Phillips said CBL's focus continues on filling the anchor spots. With the closures, Kohl's, Von Maur and Bergner's remain the mall's three largest stores. Redevelopment is not something new to the company, as it has a track record of replacing its largest vacancies, Phillips said. It has added or redeveloped more than 75 anchor and junior anchor locations at its properties in the past three years. Signs of the impending fate of the Sears store in Forsyth have been evident, especially after it no longer sold clothing items. It was one of 10 locations that in 2012 had stopped selling apparel and tried to focus on selling a larger assortment of items such as furniture and mattresses. Sears isn't the only company that has struggled as retailers across the country have been forced to adjust their methods as more consumers shop online. "Store closures are part of a series of actions we're taking to reduce ongoing expenses, adjust our asset base, and accelerate the transformation of our business model," Riefs said. "These actions will better enable us to focus our investments on serving our customers and members through integrated retail: at the store, online and in the home." The Forsyth store and auto center have a combined 45 employees, Riefs said. Those associates that are eligible will receive severance and have the opportunity to apply for open positions at area Sears or Kmart stores, Riefs said. The Forsyth location is the second Sears store in Central Illinois to close this year. The Sears at Cross County Mall in Mattoon was closed this spring. Sears Holdings reported in August losing more than $500 million in its last quarter, which the company's Chairman and CEO Eddie Lampert called unacceptable. It was the ninth consecutive quarter in which the retailer has reported a loss. As a result of its poor financial performance, Sears, which as founded in 1893, has said it will close at least 130 stores across the country although it has not listed all of those included in its plans or whether more will be added. [email protected]|(217) 421-7972 ___ (c)2014 the Herald & Review (Decatur, Ill.) Visit the Herald & Review (Decatur, Ill.) at www.herald-review.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |