Adding storefronts to mail order is a lot easier than going the other direction. There are encumbrances with real estate owned and leased, as well as the fixtures. Those didn’t exist didn’t the mai order days.
Very true, jt, but my impression is that Sears didn’t even try to go internet as the industry evolved until too late. They relied too heavily on their “brick & mortar” stores, probably not recognizing that buying habits were changing so dramatically. They ended up trying to play “catchup” and never quite succeeded. They aren’t alone in taking too long to take advantage of the new technology.
Sears was Run by very old school executives who didn’t understand the technology let alone how to leverage it. Some companies adopted to the technology. Others didn’t.
Yup!
Whether we are talking about the animal kingdom or about corporations, the same overriding factor applies:
Adapt or die!
Craftsman tool discussions…the gift that keeps on giving…
All this talk of missing out on the technology? I sometimes wonder what really the big difference is, except the tools used?
In the old days you would look in the Sears catalog (now an internet search), find what you wanted, call Sears on the telephone to order it (now internet connection or cell phone), and go pick it up at the Sears store after 4:30 (now delivered to your door). Pretty simple really.
The only difference today is that there are thousands of unknown vendors providing the on-line catalog instead of the paper one, we’re using an electronic device instead of the old rotary telephone, and its being delivered to our door instead of picking it up a couple miles away. But what technology really did they miss out on??? I really don’t see that as the “Sears” problem and I do miss the catalog. To me eliminating the catalog was the beginning of the end.
Personally, I spend more money when I visit a store in person versus internet shopping. While I’m looking, I find things I didn’t realize I needed… 
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I think it’s more than that. The retailer’s website has to be user-friendly and “optimized” If I punch “ratchet” into my search engine and Sears comes up as the 12,579th “hit” I’ll never visit there. Sears didn’t even begin really using the internet effectively until after their internet competition had already made them obsolete.
Smart senior management with vision would have brought a group of what we now call “geeks” into their organization to develop online systems years before Sears even realized they needed it.
I have no inside information, of course. My theory is really only an opinion.
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just think what COULD have been . .IF . .
and think of this in equivalence to Amazon . .
IF
’‘The Sears Catalog’’ was a digital entity ten years ago .
in everybody’s mind first , on everybody’s ( coffee table ) home screen, used for every shopping idea search even if you don’t buy from it. ( often flipping pages just to see )
Too late now.
But just think what could’ve been.
Years ago, I used to read either Sears or MW catalogs for pure fantasy. They sold things like pheasant chicks and fish to stock. And, in the early 20th Century, they sold houses, in kits.
A couple of miles from my house, there is a grouping of three Craftsman-style houses that were built from Sears home-building kits. Many younger folks would probably shun these houses because they are rather small by modern standards, but the quality of the materials and the execution of the decoration is…magnificent.
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Odd how houses keep getting bigger, then there are the small condos and efficiencies/studios, then there are the ‘tiny houses’…
some stuff from there is good, some is real garbage
picked up S-shaped wrenches for hard-to-reach areas => these were GREAT
bought set of ratches: they were oversized and slipped over edges like crazy => back they went 
The big difference is that online is up to date. The Sears catalog came out once or twice a year so you have no idea of availability of products or sales. The technology drastically increased the efficiency of the ordering process. Companies like LL Bean which adopted the technology early saw huge Increases in sales without sacrificing customer satisfaction.
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Yeah, when we bought our house 19 years ago, 10 or 11 foot ceilings were the rage, as were vaulted ceilings. We opted for standard 8 foot ceilings. The only 2-story room is the foyer. We got a lot more usable space under roof and have been saving money on heating and cooling with the lower, standard ceiling height. I don’t regret the decisions for a moment.
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But many Sears houses were quite large:
My grandparents lived in one that was two stories and, like you say, very well made.
There was a PBS special some years back on Sears houses. They toured a number of them, many in the same neighborhoods. I was surprised at the high level of quality.
As I was strolling in an west New York community, I spotted a metal house. The owner was in the yard so I asked him if it was a Sears house but he said no it was a Lustron. I believe they were made in Columbus, OH after the war. Wasn’t a very friendly guy though. There’s one I know of in South Minneapolis too. Interesting but not my style.
Sears should have been the leader in internet sales - given their background in catalog sales
- BUT -
There was a 40 year gap between those 2 events. In that space, people wanted to go to malls to do their shopping. Plus, the need to have good quality products (something Sears took seriously before they started their downward spiral) is something the buying public has left behind (in the age of throwaway products,)
I think Sears started their decline in the 1980’s. Their forte was tools and appliances - and they tried to compete in the clothing segment - a huge mistake.
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