Kmarts in Rostraver, Butler, Indiana to close; sales start June 15
Sears Holdings Corp. plans to close 72 stores, including three Kmart locations in Western Pennsylvania.
The company confirmed Wednesday to the Tribune-Review that Kmart stores in Rostraver, Butler and White Township, Indiana County, are slated to close in early September, with liquidation sales at the locations set to begin June 15.
According to the statement, the “difficult, but necessary” decision to close the locations comes as Sears Holdings has accelerated the shuttering of unprofitable stores. The company said it hopes to “retain a portion of the sales previously associated with these stores” through online shopping and mobile apps.
Several shoppers spotted Wednesday at the Rostraver store lamented the pending loss of a store they'd visited since their childhood. Some said the closing would pose a hardship.
“I think it's sad,” Caryl Perney of Scenery Hill, Washington County, said of the Ros‑traver store's demise. Perney believes the advent of internet shopping contributed to the closing but said the loss of a brick-and-mortar retail outlet will most affect her mother, Margie Buralli of Monessen, whom she drove to the store Wednesday.
“It's terrible,” Buralli said. “I'm not going to go through the expense of a computer so I can shop.”
She said she eventually may have to rely on her daughter to purchase items for her online.
“I'm sorry to see it close,” said Ruth Lander of West Newton, who drives to the Rostraver store for its line of Steelers products. But, once the doors close, “I'll go to Wal-Mart or Dick's,” she said.
Cara Fletcher of Republic, Fayette County, said she and her family have traveled to patronize the Rostraver store about once a week since a larger Kmart in Uniontown closed last year.
“They have a few things that Wal-Mart doesn't have,” she said. She wasn't sure how she'll shift her shopping habits to cope with the Rostraver closing.
Many weren't surprised by the news that the store will soon be history.
“I'm surprised that they still have as many customers as they do,” said Vicki Barcelo of Jefferson Township, Fayette County, who cited an earlier rumor of the store's expected closure.
The company didn't disclose the number of employees who would be affected by the area store closings but said most are part-time or hourly associates and noted those eligible will receive severance pay and be able to apply for positions at other area Sears or Kmart stores.
Jeff Himler is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-836-6622, jhimler@tribweb.com or via Twitter @jhimler_news.
