SEARS
Targeting College Students

Prepared For:
MKT 360 – Marketing Analytics

April 25, 2012

Table of Contents

Section title Page Executive Summary 3 Introduction 5 Purpose of the Study 5 Sears: Trends in Sales 5 Competitors 7 Sears Consumer Segments 8 Purchasing Trends 11 Legal Issues 11 Social & Cultural Issues 12 Economic Trends 14 Technological Innovations 15 Research Objectives 17 Methodology 18 Data Analysis & Results 21 Profile of the Sample 21 Descriptive Results 23 Difference & Associative Analysis 33 Limitations 37 Conclusions & Recommendations 40 References 46 Appendix 49

List of Illustrations

Figures Page Figure 1.0: Sears Brands 5 Figure 2.0: Respondent’s Gender 21 Figure 3.0: Past Six Months Mall Visits 22 Figure 4.0: Clothing Stores 23 Figure 5.0: Percent of Respondents that Purchased Fitness Equipment in the Past Two Years 24 Figure 6.0: Fitness Equipment Purchase Location 24 Figure 7.0: Most Popular Sears Brands 28 Figure 8.0: Incentives to Increase the Probability of Entering a Store 30 Figure 9.0: Social Media 31 Figure 10.0: Facebook Presence 32 Figure 11.0: Gender vs. Mall Visits 35

Tables Page Table 1.0: Respondent’s Age 22 Table 2.0: The Appeal of the Kardashian Kollection to Females 23 Table 3.0: Perception of Sears 25 Table 4.0: Cause Marketing Practices 29 Table 5.0: Mall Visits vs. Store Location 33 Table 6.0: Price vs. Trendiness 34 Table 7.0: The Relationship between Perception of Service and Age 36

Executive Summary

Objectives This study was an investigation of college students’ perceptions of Sears Department Stores. These included specific aspects that improved consumers perceptions of Sears, and what didn’t. These were also used to