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Crisis and responsibility
Eddie Lampert is the president, the main shareholder of the holding company and has been the company's managing director for five years. Many say that he is responsible for the crisis
Sears has been in existence for 132 years and is one of the most iconic companies in the United States. But its history has not stopped the commercial chain from declaring bankruptcy this week.
After the announcement on Monday, many concluded that the iconic store was simply a victim of the new technological era.
He could not compete with Amazon, "said several badysts in response to the news.
However, with time, more and more voices are emerging to ensure that Sears issues – which will continue to function in a limited way, they have nothing to do with their numerical skills, but with their leadership.
Specifically, the darts go against the dancers. Former director, president and main shareholder of Sears Holdings, Eddie Lampert, one of the richest men in the world According to Forbes magazine, the United States, which manages the investment fund ESL Investments and have a fortune of $ 1.1 billion (1965), said: "He holds the position of executive director of the retail giant in Sears problems. Holdings (Sears, Kmart, Kenmore) in 2013 hoping to change course, but it failed miserably, "says Forbes in a profile on the investor.
In fact, the connection between Lampert and Sears began a lot before he became director of the group five years ago (Monday, he resigned but remains president of Sears Holdings).
The initial link with the group dates back to 2004, when its fund Part of the investments bought a part of Sears Holding.
A year earlier, the investor had also bought Kmart bonds and acquired a controlling position in this company.
In addition, its initial success in Kmart was "captivated" on Wall Street, "says Vanity Fair reporter William D. Cohan, one of the few who managed to interview the billionaire.
In 2003, Kmart's operating profit rose to about $ 400 million. And the next year, they were $ 900 million. According to Lamphan, this success made Lampert proud.
"He thought he would know more about retail than about financial engineering," Cohan wrote this week in an editorial published by the New York Times.
Cohan and other observers believe that one of the biggest mistakes made by the investor was to merge Kmart with Sears in 2005.
Lampert l & rsquo Described it as "a transformation", but then he decided not to invest the necessary funds for the renovation of the famous stores.
Instead he committed what his detractors regard as his second big mistake: focusing on developing and promoting the Sears website and online sales. But "Amazon has devoured Sears' lunch (as well as their breakfast and dinner)," said Cohen.
"Sears succumbed to Lampert's arrogance," the journalist concluded in his pithy article.
Cohan is the only one to criticize and blame the Sears boss for the company's debacle.
"Lampert's skills as a retailer are … well," limited "is an enlightened way to say it," he wrote. Helaine Olen in the Washington Post
"He often dictated politics (business) by videoconference from one of his multiple homes," he said in another memo. opinion.
"Under his leadership, Sears does not invest in stores, but rather non-traditional and often dubious solutions," he agreed with Cohan.
The finance reporter also questioned the "conflict of interest" in many of Lampert's decisions.
Your investment fund, ESL Investments has loaned millions of dollars to Sears and has also purchased debt, which could pay off now that Sears has declared bankruptcy.
ESL also bought back many of the chain's most profitable activities, such as Land & End's clothing catalog line and others, and also indirectly acquired some of the Sears real estate, charging rent to the company for the use of the buildings that belonged to it.
"Many badysts believe that the fall of Sears is a warning about reckless loans and the inability to adapt, especially to e-commerce and competitors like Amazon. There's a lot of truth about it, "Jeff Spross wrote in The Week.
"But there is another part of the story that deserves the same attention: how an investment fund on Wall Street … was disarm and sell a party to Sears. "
In a speech made in front of a thousand Sears employees, Lampert acknowledged that he had not achieved the goal that he had fixed.
"When Sears and Kmart merged in 2005 and I envisioned a different, 21st century company, two iconic companies that have gone astray," he said.
"As we all know, we did not take advantage of this opportunity, as I would have wished."
"There were mistakes along the way, for which I was not sure. "Assumes responsibility." These failures have affected me in so many ways, far more than any success I've had, "said the billionaire.
The company announced with a statement its intention to continue operations with profitable stores and the Sears and Kmart Websites.
However, he announced that he would close 142 of his nearly 700 stores by the end of the year and seek to sell another 400, which would have a considerable impact on the remaining 68,000 employees. .
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