Hoffman Estates, Ill.-based Sears Holdings posted net income of $189 million in the quarter, compared with a loss of $165 million in the prior-year period.

After several rounds of closings of Kmart and Sears full-line stores in the past months, revenues decreased $270 million to $9.3 billion for the quarter ended April 28. Domestic comp-store sales declined 1.3% -- 1.0% at Sears Domestic and 1.6% at Kmart. Sears also saw declines in its home appliances and consumer electronics categories.

Whether it’s a product designed to bring efficiency to the home, save time for the DIYer or allow a consumer a chance to feel good about buying a Made-in-the-USA product, show organizers have taken steps to give permanence to the show-floor activity.

The May 1 to 3 event at the Las Vegas Convention Center will see a few new twists.

For the first time at the show, a “Made in the USA Pavilion” will showcase domestic-made products.

More than 35 years after a DieHard battery charged a frigid car on a frozen lake in International Falls, Minn., as part of a television ad campaign, the battery brand is back at it. 

This time, it’s alkaline.

On Sunday during an ESPN2 broadcast, DieHard will debut its television commercial for DieHard alkaline batteries. Instead of a Chevrolet Chevelle driving across ice, the new commercial will show a battery-powered remote control car.

In a move to ensure that vendors continue to supply Sears its goods, Sears Holdings Corp.'s top shareholder ESL Investments, a hedge fund owned by Edward Lampert, has agreed to assume some payment obligations.

In a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday and reported by Reuters, Sears said ESL made a deal on Jan. 26 with a financial institution to acquire 80% interest in an agreement designed to ensure payment to vendors in the event of a bankruptcy filing by a company.

Dev Mukherjee, president of the home appliances business at Sears for the past 16 months, has departed the company, according to an article in the Chicago Tribune. A replacement will be named “in a few weeks,” according to a Sears spokesman.

Sears quietly added all nine of its Great Indoors stores to the list of store closings on Feb. 23.

Store managers were informed on Thursday, a Sears spokeswoman confirmed, but no exact date has been given for the closings.  

The upscale remodeling and home décor stores began opening in 1998, long before the Sears and Kmart merger. At one point, Sears operated 20 of the units, but they were never a big moneymaker for the company. 

According to an article in the Chicago Sun Times, Sears Holdings Corp. will lay off employees from a variety of departments at its Hoffman Estates, Ill., headquarters.

The layoffs will not affect the retailer's recently approved tax credit from the state of Illinios. The $150 million payroll tax credit take effect next year, and -- according to the article -- requires a minimum of 4,250 headquarters employees.

California retailer Orchard Supply Hardware Stores Corp. entered into a multi-year distribution agreement with high-end paint manufacturer Benjamin Moore & Co.

Under the agreement, Benjamin Moore will become Orchard's supplier of interior and exterior paint coatings. The rollout to Orchard's 87-store chain is expected to begin in March and be completed by August 2012.

On its first day of trading on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol "OSH," Orchard Supply Hardware fell $1.47 to close at $23.55.

It was a lackluster day for the company's stock, but the San Jose, Calif.-based hardware chain is eager to begin corporate life as an independent publicly traded company, said CEO Mark Baker.

The retailer completed its spin-off from Sears Holdings Dec. 30 at 11:59 p.m. 

Hoffman Estates, Ill.-based Sears Holdings has identified 80 of the 100 to 120 stores it plans to close as part of a strategy it announced earlier this week.

The list of 80 stores-to-be-closed includes 39 Kmart stores, 25 Sears full-line stores, and 14 Grand/Essentials and two Sears Hardlines Only stores. The list can be seen here.

The Hoffman Estates, Ill.-based retail giant thanked lawmakers for passing a tax-incentive plan to keep business in the state.

After researching a possible move to Ohio or Texas, Sears yesterday applauded the Illinois General Assembly for its bipartisan support of legislation that Sears said would allow it to maintain its headquarters in Hoffman Estates, Ill.

According to an article in Canadian Business, Sears Canada laid off about 70 employees from its Toronto headquarters.

Sears Canada is 92% owned by Hoffman Estates, Ill.-based Sears Holdings, which reported a widened net loss in its recent third-quarter earnings report. Sears Canada comps declined 7.8% in the third quarter.