Sears announces 2 northeast Ohio Kmart stores to close, more possible

CLEVELAND - Sears Holdings Corp. announced the closing of more than 100 Sears and Kmart stores, including two in northeast Ohio.

The company cited poor sales during the holidays as the reason to close between 100 and 120 stores. The company released a list of 79 stores , mostly Kmart stores, on Thursday. Six of the stores closing are in Ohio, which appears to be one of the states most impacted.

Here are the stores in Cleveland/Akron/Canton area that are closing:

>> Kmart
Chillicothe Road, Chagrin Falls
Close date: to be determined

>>Kmart
North Court Street, Medina
Close date: to be determined

Here are the Ohio stores Sears announced would close earlier this year:

>> Sears Hardware
Bishop Road, Wickliffe/Willoughby Hills
Close date: Oct. 29, 2011

>> Sears Hardware
Leland Avenue, Akron
Close date: Dec. 7, 2011

>> Sears Hardware
Vine Street, Eastlake
Close date: Jan. 7, 2012

Here is the full story about the closing from the Associated Press:

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, due to the addition of more small stores.