Sears Proposes Restructuring

Sears (Hoffman Estates, Ill.) has submitted a proposal to restructure the company in a move to avoid filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

According to Springfield News-Sun, the proposal from Chief Executive Officer Eddie Lampert's ESL Investments hedge fund includes closing unprofitable stores, selling properties, seeking partners and reducing operating expenses. For instance, the company would look to sell about $1.5 billion in real estate and about $1.75 billion in other assets, including its Kenmore appliance brand.

Those changes are expected to reduce the company’s debt by about 80 percent from $5.6 billion. The proposal is timely given that the company has a $134 million loan payment that is due October 15.