I'm sure it's just posturing but it is interesting to see that Columbus is one of the candidates for a possible relocation of Sears corporate.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/breaking/chi-sears-reportedly-pitting-illinois-against-ohio-texas-20111005,0,7237935.story
Columbus Underground Messageboard » General Columbus Discussion
Sears interested in Columbus for relocation
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Posted 1 year ago #
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I doubt it sears would leave Illinois, but if they do and build in Columbus, that would add [u]thousands of jobs[i]
Posted 1 year ago # -
Lately just about every day some major Illinois corporation threatens to leave the state, especially in light of increased taxes designed to help balance the state budget. In almost every case the state offers some sort of incentive, and the company stays put. I think Caterpillar farm equipment got the ball rolling on this trend.
Not really on topic, but I still cringe every time I go to Chicago and am reminded that the Sears Tower is now the Willis Tower. Ugh.
Posted 1 year ago # -
Moving Sears corporate from Illinois to Ohio would be like changing the sheets of a terminally ill patient. The biggest losers would be the people forced to move twice: once when the company relocates, and again when the company liquidates and they lose their jobs.
Posted 1 year ago # -
Selfishly, I'd love to see Sears make the move, but if staying put is going to better solidify the employment of those working for Sears, then by all means, stay put.
Posted 1 year ago # -
NEOBuckeye said:
Moving Sears corporate from Illinois to Ohio would be like changing the sheets of a terminally ill patient. The biggest losers would be the people forced to move twice: once when the company relocates, and again when the company liquidates and they lose their jobs.Precisely. Financier Eddie Lampert knows nothing about running a retailer. He is just running Sears into the ground, and within a few years there will be zero Sears jobs -- here, in Texas, in Illinois or anywhere else. Sad but true.
Posted 1 year ago # -
MichaelC said:
Selfishly, I'd love to see Sears make the move, but if staying put is going to better solidify the employment of those working for Sears, then by all means, stay put.Moving or staying put won't do much to alter their present trajectory. The problem is that the company's executive management has allowed the brand to decline into mediocrity, if not obscurity. No one, including Sears itself, seems to know what Sears stores are about anymore. This was a problem even before Sears merged with K-Mart, but seven years post-merger, it seems like a huge opportunity to remake the company has been squandered.
Posted 1 year ago # -
NEOBuckeye,
Thanks for that. I confess to only knowing that Sears is not a brand that has made a name for itself in recent years. It helps to have the information you shared.
Posted 1 year ago # -
I only ever think of Sears as being a part of a dead mall
Posted 1 year ago # -
Anne said:
I only ever think of Sears as being a part of a dead mallhttp://www.theatlanticcities.com/jobs-and-economy/2011/10/holy-spirit-shopping-mall/245/
Maybe Sears should become a church
Posted 1 year ago # -
NEOBuckeye said:
Moving Sears corporate from Illinois to Ohio would be like changing the sheets of a terminally ill patient. The biggest losers would be the people forced to move twice: once when the company relocates, and again when the company liquidates and they lose their jobs.bingo
that has been done several times in this city,just in the last 10 years.
Posted 1 year ago # -
NEOBuckeye said:
The biggest losers would be the people forced to move twice: once when the company relocates, and again when the company liquidates and they lose their jobs.Hopefully the city/county/state will chip in a heavy tax incentive package for a relocation effort so that everyone in the region can be big losers too!
Posted 1 year ago # -
I suspect they are "shopping" in Austin and Columbus because A, Austin is bombing a bit and will get a decent tax package from Texas, and B. Our governor loves to throw tax incomes out the windows.
So then they can tell Ill. they have better deals and will move, then Ill. will scramble and give the same tax cut deal or better to keep them.
Seems like Corps just shop around for who won't Tax them, wish someone would offer to relive my taxes if I moved somewhere.
Posted 1 year ago # -
I kind of like Sears.
Posted 1 year ago # -
melikecheese said:
Seems like Corps just shop around for who won't Tax them, wish someone would offer to relive my taxes if I moved somewhere.There are states that do just that. States with higher sales tax and no income tax use that as a "sales pitch" to citizens as well as corporations.
Posted 1 year ago # -
Place on Sears’ short list a plus for city
By Marla Matzer Rose
The Columbus Dispatch
Friday October 7, 2011 5:16 AMWhether Sears Holdings Corp. ends up coming to Columbus or not, reports that the company has put the city on a short list as it considers moving its headquarters is bringing national attention to central Ohio.
Many observers are betting that the owner of Sears and Kmart will end up getting a better deal from Illinois and staying in the Chicago area after its months-long flirtation with moving. But several people with knowledge of the situation say Columbus has made it to the final phase of a serious, multicity search — which in itself is an achievement.
Posted 1 year ago # -
I wish our government would spend more time encouraging/supporting small business rather than trying to cater to these big businesses and industry. Instead of giving big business a million dollar tax break, give 100 small businesses a $10,000 tax break and I'm willing to bet you'd see a lot more success.
Posted 1 year ago # -
columbusmike said:
I wish our government would spend more time encouraging/supporting small business rather than trying to cater to these big businesses and industry. Instead of giving big business a million dollar tax break, give 100 small businesses a $10,000 tax break and I'm willing to bet you'd see a lot more success.+1^ and -1 -> "Commercial real-estate experts say the most likely place for a retailer such as Sears to land would be in a suburb such as New Albany or the Polaris area. Although the Far West Side and the Rickenbacker Airport area are key distribution hubs, Holderman said, top management officials typically prefer that a headquarters location be based in an upscale suburban area closer to where they’re likely to reside."
Corporations seem to love the sprawl and they continue to support the suburban campuses. I understand it may be cheaper to build "out" in these areas rather than "up" but the above statement makes me less excited. The likelihood of a tower being built Downtown is small and the impact it could make on our residents seems lessened in a suburb. I could only imagine the positive impact of a tower (aesthetically and economically) with 6,000+ people working Downtown. This would help us tremendously as a city and a region. Imagine that many bodies in our Downtown. Endless possibilities for retail and small businesses.
Work your magic Mike.
Posted 1 year ago #
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