| Florida will be hit the hardest by the closing of Sears and Kmart stores, losing 11, according to a preliminary list of 79 planned closures released Thursday. | |
| Ohio, Michigan and Georgia are not far behind with six store closures planned in their states. Tennessee, North Carolina and Minnesota are set to lose four stores each. | |
| A spokeswoman for Sears Holding Corp. said each store employs between 40 and 80 people. | |
| None of the closures announced so far are in Sears’ home state of Illinois. | |
| The 125-year-old retailer said on Tuesday it would close up to 120 stores to raise cash. | |
| The projected closings represent only about 3 percent of Sears Holdings’ U.S. stores. Sears and Kmart merged in 2005. The company now has about 3,560 stores in the U.S. That’s up from 3,500 immediately after the merger. | |
| Here is the list of closures announced so far: | |
| _ Alabama (3): Sears in Mobile | Kmart in Auburn and Gadsden. |
| _ California (3): Sears in El Monte and San Diego (2). | |
| _ Colorado (3): Sears in Longmont | Kmart in Broomfield and Glenwood Springs. |
| _ Florida (11): Sears in Crystal River, Deland, Port St. Lucie, Stuart, West Palm Beach | Kmart in Callaway, Fernandina Beach, New Smyrna Beach, Orange City, Pompano Beach and St. Augustine. |
| _ Georgia (6): Sears in Macon | Kmart in Atlanta, Buford, Columbus, Douglasville and Jonesboro. |
| _ Idaho (1): Sears in Lewiston. | |
| _ Indiana (3): Sears in Anderson | Kmart in Indianapolis and St. John. |
| _ Iowa (2): Kmart in Cedar Rapids and Davenport. | |
| _ Kansas (1): Sears in Lawrence. | |
| _ Kentucky (3): Sears in Middleboro | Kmart in Hazard and Winchester. |
| _ Maryland (1): Sears in Ellicott City. | |
| _ Michigan (6): Sears in Adrian, Brighton, Chesterfield Township, Harper Woods, Monroe and Washington Township. | |
| _ Minnesota (4): Kmart in Duluth, New Hope, White Bear Lake and Willmar. | |
| _ Mississippi (3): Sears in Columbus, Jackson and McComb. | |
| _ Missouri (2): Sears in Lee’s Summit and St. Louis. | |
| _ New Hampshire (2): Sears in Keene and Nashua. | |
| _ North Carolina (4): Sears in High Point, Morehead City, Rocky Mount and Statesville. | |
| _ Ohio (6): Kmart in Chagrin Falls, Columbus, Medina, Springfield and Toledo (2). | |
| _ Oregon (1): Sears in Roseburg. | |
| _ Pennsylvania (2): Sears in Pottstown and Upper Darby. | |
| _ South Carolina (1): Sears in Sumter. | |
| _ Tennessee (4): Sears in Antioch, Cleveland, Oak Ridge | Kmart in Hendersonville. |
| _ Virginia (3): Sears in Norfolk | Kmart in Midlothian and Richmond. |
| _ Washington (2): Sears in Walla Walla | Kmart in Lacey. |
| _ Wisconsin (2): Sears in West Baraboo | Kmart in Rice Lake. |