Competitive Expenditure Analysis

Sears Holding Company and its outlet store, Sears, sells clothes and home goods. The company is big on in-house brands and is similar to Target in that sense. Sears’ budget was 1.5 billion in 2013 (Brands, 2013). Sears’s highlights include big name items like the Kardashian Kollection and Kenmore. According to Forbes, Sears is the top destination for items from coffee makers to refrigerators. About 23.5% of consumers overall say Sears is the first store they would go to for items such as that (Goodfellow, 2014).

Collectively, Sears Holdings spent $560 million in media last year with $350 million going towards Sears in 2014 (O’Leary, 2014). Sears is looking towards marketing tactics that include advertising, digital, PR, direct and other marketing (O’Leary, 2014)

In recent times, Sears has been shutting down various brick-and-mortar locations across the nation (Wahba, 2014). However, Eddie Lampert, Sears CEO, argues the company is transforming into a, “membership-based, e-commerce-centric retailer anchored on its Shop Your Way program.” (Forbes, 2014). This specifically aligns with the goals of Target trying to become an e-commerce giant.

Pictured below is a graph showing the age ranges for which brands are considered first. Kenmore, a Sears brand, holds the least stock in Millennials. However, they hold a considerable amount of the age range 35-54. Target’s target demographic lies around that age-range.

(Goodfellow, 2014).

Sears is the largest seller of fitness products (Gutman, 2012). Chief Digital Officer at Sears Holdings talks about Sears online fitness community by saying they leverage their online platforms including Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest (Gutman, 2012).

Sears advertises weekend sales, holiday happenings and Black Friday deals through print through newspapers or the mail. The timing of media delivery is the same as most discount retail stores and includes a big push during busy seasons and is big on Black Friday. Sears also started the Shop Your Way program in which members can

redeem points. Sears Holdings spokesperson said these promotions will replace some traditional advertising programs over time (Zmuda, 2013). Their media selection also spans across television and Internet ads.

Sears is the largest seller of fitness products (Gutman, 2012). Chief Digital Officer at Sears Holdings talks about Sears online fitness community by saying they leverage their online platforms including Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest (Gutman, 2012).

Brands, S. (2013, January 1). Investor Information. Retrieved February 1, 2015.

Gutman, B. (2012, May 8). Sears Explains Its Success In Content Marketing. Retrieved February 2, 2015.

Goodfellow, P. (2014, January 9). Sears Slumps In Appliances As Kenmore Fails To Attract Millennial Shoppers. Retrieved February 1, 2015.

O'Leary, N. (2014, November 11). Are Ad Agencies the Next Target for Sears Holdings' Cost-Cutting? Retrieved February 2, 2015.

Wahba, P. (2014, December 15). Sears CEO Lampert explains why he closed 200 stores. Retrieved February 1, 2015.

Zmuda, N. (2013, August 23). Is Sears Holdings' Loyalty Program Helping or Hurting It? Retrieved February 2, 2015.