Sears banks on retail; credit biz on the block.(Sears, Roebuck & Co. to sell credit card portfolio)
Home Textiles Today, April, 2003
HOFFMAN ESTATES, IL -- Seeking to boost its sagging share price and bottom line, Sears, Roebuck & Co. is putting up for sale its $30 billion credit card portfolio. The business has vexed management in recent years as consumers stopped paying their bills. With about 25 million active accounts, the business makes up almost two-thirds of Sears' overall profits, but has been a source of problems in recent years as consumer delinquencies soared in a weakening economy, and the retailer ran into costly legal problems over its debt collection tactics.
The credit card business has been immensely profitable, generating net income of $1.5 billion last year. But as consumers stopped paying their bills, the retailer was forced to boost its provision for doubtful...
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