Sears, Roebuck & Co.

New York City -- Sears Holdings Corp. has identified 79 of the 100 to 120 Sears and Kmart stores it said last week it would close, with the preliminary list split almost evenly between the two chains.

Florida will be hit the hardest, with 11 stores to be shuttered, the Associated Press reported. Ohio, Michigan and Georgia are not far behind with six store closures planned in their states. Tennessee, North Carolina and Minnesota are set to lose four stores each.

New York City -- Sears has given store associates more than 5,000 Apple iPads and 11,000 iPod touches to track inventory and customer orders, Lou D’Ambrosio, CEO, Sears Holdings Corp., said in a Bloomberg report.

In the article, D’Ambrosio also took on critics who have complained that Sears has not invested enough in its stores. The chain is spending less than a quarter of the $8 a square foot that retailers typically invest to maintain stores, according to International Strategy & Investment Group, according to the report.

Hoffman Estates, Ill. -- Sears Holdings Corp. said Tuesday that it will close between 100 and 120 underperforming Sears and Kmart stores, following dismal holiday sales results for the brands.

The company said it has not yet identified which stores will be shuttered, but said that the closures are part of an overall plan to shift its focus from shoring up underperformers to concentrating its efforts on stronger stores.

Change at the top is an inevitable fact of life in any profession, and retail is no exception. While the reasons behind the need to find a new chief executive vary widely, the incoming executives face a common challenge: taking the business — be it faltering or thriving — forward without missing a beat.

Springfield, Ill. -- Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn signed legislation Friday that grants hundreds of millions of dollars in tax breaks and incentives aimed at keeping Sears Holdings Corp., along with CME Group Inc., which operates the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, headquartered in Illinois.

Lawmakers approved the business tax breaks earlier this month, but Quinn had not yet signed the bill. Both companies had openly threatened to leave the state without some kind of significant aid package.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — Reuters news service has reported that the shareholders of Sears Holding Corp. will end up with 80% of the common stock in Orchard Supply Hardware stores, following an attempt to spin off the California hardware chain into a separate unit.

New York City -- The board of Sears Holdings Corp has approved the spinoff of Sears’ Orchard Supply Hardware Stores Corp.

Sears announced its intention to spin off the 89-store hardware store chain in June, saying both companies could better focus on their goals as separate firms.

Chicago -- Illinois House leaders have agreed to pass tax breaks in order to keep Sears Holdings Corp. from abandoning its Hoffman Estates, Ill., headquarters in search of a new out-of-state home, according to Reuters.

The deal is also designed to keep Ill.-based securities and commodities trading company CME Group in-state as well.

The House had previously shot down the tax package.