Sears clears out of Pittsburgh Mills mall
The rattling of empty metal shelves being torn down echoed across the all-but-vacant Sears Grand store and Auto Center at the Pittsburgh Mills on Sunday.
“Everything Must Go” signs lined the long white walls, where hundreds of products once were on display. By mid-afternoon, only small pockets of clearance sale furniture, fixtures and equipment remained on the sprawling tile floor.
Sunday marked the Sears location's last day of business. Sears Holding announced the closing in October as part of the company's strategy to reduce expenses and speed up the transformation of its business model.
Attempts to reach a company spokesperson Sunday were unsuccessful.
When the closing was announced, the store had 97 employees. Eligible employees were to receive severance and have the opportunity to apply for positions at other Sears or Kmart stores. Several employees declined comment, citing corporate policy.
Not everyone stood to lose by the store's closing, however. Ray Hrabos, for one, said he made out with “thousands of dollars” worth of items at a cost of about $600 during the going-out-of-business sale.
“They're practically giving this stuff away,” said Hrabos as he stacked a pile of recently purchased siding, shelving and tables in his pickup bed. “It's unbelievable.”
Hrabos, who lives in Cranberry but owns a house in Springdale, said he took advantage of the store's closing to obtain the materials needed for a new building to house his collection of classic cars. The prices, he said, were unmatched — even on the Internet, where he typically finds the best sales for such items.
“I feel bad for the people at this store,” he said. “It seems to be happening a lot, because more people are shopping online.
“It's no longer brick and mortar — it's click and order.”
The Sears store isn't the only closing that Pittsburgh Mills has faced recently.
Jerry Crites, the mall manager, said the mall lost the young women's clothing store Wet Seal earlier this month. The chain, which recently filed for bankruptcy, has closed more than 300 stores since the new year.
“Retail is always in evolution,” Crites said.
According to Crites, that evolution will continue when Jo-Ann Fabrics takes over the former location of Borders.
“They just took hold of the space (Thursday),” Crites said. “They're going to open March 6th.”
Calls to Zamias Services, which owns the Mills mall, were unsuccessful.
Some of those who turned out for the Sears store's final day were drawn to the sales, but upset about its closing.
Tammy Siceloff of West Deer said she shopped at the Mills mall Sears weekly from the time it opened about a decade ago.
“It's sad to see it go,” Siceloff said. “It's all pretty well cleared out in there. They always had good deals and better quality than some of the other department stores. Hopefully, they get a good tenant to replace them. My vote is for a Boscov's.”
Paula Krally, who was shopping with her 12-year-old daughter, Brooke, said her family frequented the store and often took advantage of its auto center.
“We've been shopping here since Brooke was a baby,” said Krally of Indiana Township. “You hate to see any store around here close. I don't know where we're going to go now. It's sad to see it go.”
Braden Ashe is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. Freelance writer R.A. Monti and staff writer Jodi Weigand contributed.
