AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT BELK

Charlotte, North Carolina-based Belk, a general merchandise department store chain with nearly 300 locations in 16 states, has announced that the company will close its Jonesville, South Carolina fulfillment center in the near future.

The closure will impact 310 employees between April 30, 2022, and May 28, 2022. Online fulfillment operations are likely to be transferred to the company's Blythewood, South Carolina distribution center.

A company spokesperson noted, "The decision to close the Jonesville center meets the needs of the company’s supply chain network after reviewing of internal processes. We know the closure will affect associates at the Jonesville fulfillment center, and we are committed to working with them in the coming weeks to provide resources during the transition.”

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?

AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT ACE HARDWARE (03/19/23)

MARCH 19, 2021 — 86 EMPLOYEES IN SPOKANE, WASHINGTON

The company has announced that 86 employees are targeted to be laid off in May 2023, at the company’s Ace Hardware Retail Support Center (Jensen Distribution Services) in Spokane.

NOVEMBER 2, 2021 — Original post…

Oak Brook, Illinois-based Ace Hardware Corporation, the largest hardware retailers' cooperative in the United States, has announced the relocation of its Tampa retail support center in Tampa, Florida to another facility located 25-miles away in Plant City, Florida.

The Tampa facility will be permanently closed on or around February 5, 2022 and will impact approximately 181 employees including 111 warehouse workers, 9 janitors, 27 drivers, 22 managers and supervisors, and 12 clerical workers.

Some employees may be provided the opportunity to move to the new plant on or around December 15, 2021.

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?

AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT KMART

Hoffman Estates, Illinois-based Transformco, the parent company of Kmart and now more a hedge-fund controlled real estate salvage operation than a retailer is continuing with its 2019 restructuring plan announced when the company purchased Sears and Kmart from the bankruptcy court.

The company will be closing it White Plains, New York store leaving 16 remaining locations of the iconic Kmart megastores after a liquidation sale taking place through November 2021. The company declines to cite the number of layoffs, but it is likely that the liquidators will hire temporary help before shutting the doors.

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, both Sears and Kmart were struggling with large outdated stores that could not compete with smaller specialty stores and online retailers that were driving shifting consumer buying patterns.

The Kmart brand is likely to survive as Transformco implements its "go-forward store strategy for Sears and Kmart, planning to operate a diversified portfolio consisting of a small number of larger, premier stores with a larger number of small-format stores -- including the more than 300 Hometown Stores and Home & Life stores that are currently operated by independent dealers or franchisees of an affiliate of Transformco."

The red flags are flying in retail and careers with major stores are coming to an end. Sears and Kmart have closed more than 3,500 stores and cut about 250,000 jobs since 2006 in a declining spiral.

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?