Retailer Sears is exploring a possible sale of its home improvement business following interest from potential suitors, including private equity firms, according to CNBC. The retailer's Sears Home Services division has emerged as a coveted asset during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic as homeowners embark on home improvements and renovations while they are sheltering in their homes.
The [home improvement] division is one of the department store operator’s few crown jewels following its bankruptcy in 2018 and $5.2 billion sale to hedge fund manager Eddie Lampert, who was already its biggest shareholder and creditor.
Transformco, the owner of the Sears and Kmart retail chains, could raise at least $1 billion by divesting the home improvement business, the sources said. Sears has tapped investment bankers at Guggenheim Securities LLC to explore selling the business, the sources said.
Transformco could also sell a stake in Sears Home Services and retain some ownership of the business, one of the sources said, cautioning that a deal may not come together at all.
Sears Home Services handles work such as appliance repair, replacement of vinyl siding, roofing and kitchen remodeling.
In April, Sears temporarily closed all its stores in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The company plans to permanently close some locations in the months ahead, bringing its total store count, now around 90, to about 65, according to a source familiar with the matter.
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