Sears, Kmart jump on layaway bandwagon by waiving fees

Hoffman Estates, Ill. -- Sears Holdings Corp. said Friday that both its Sears and Kmart banners would waive layaway fees for the holidays, allowing shoppers to open interest-free pay-over-time programs at both stores and online with no customary initial fees. Kmart’s program will run through Nov. 17, but Sears Holdings had yet to set a timeframe for its namesake stores.



In the past, Kmart and Sears have charged $5 for an eight-week layaway contract and $10 for the 12-week program.



The announcement comes just days after Walmart publicized that it would lower its upfront layaway fee to $5 and Toys “R” Us eliminated its upfront service fee for layaway orders created in-store from Sept. 4 through Oct. 31.