The Creative Destruction of Sears

Is Sears dying because of Creative Destruction? Yes and No.

Former Sears in Chicago. Photo by artistmac.

The following is a series of stories on the downfall of Sears and Kmart. To read past stories and listen to podcasts, please go here and here.

In a few weeks' time, the last Kmart and the last Sears will close in the United States. Most people won’t notice let alone care. The real Sears story has never garnered much interest. Most people especially the media have bought into a certain narrative: that Sears and Kmart failed to keep up with the times and now they are paying the consequences. One of the responses to my recent article about Sears wondered if this is about “creative destruction.” So, is Sears basically the victim of the natural churn of capitalism or is it about something more sinister?

First, you have to define what the phrase “creative destruction” means. The term was made famous by Austrian political economist Joseph Schumpeter. Creative destruction describes how capitalism leads to the constant change in the economy. The website economicshelp.org says that old…