Sears has hired liquidator Abacus Advisory Group to sell the retailer's inventory and other physical assets if takeover negotiations with chairman Eddie Lampert fail, Reuters reports.
The bottom line: While this isn't a final nail in the coffin for Lampert's $4.4 billion rescue effort, it does mean the gravediggers have been summoned. "The billionaire and Sears are racing to resolve the bid’s sticking points before a Tuesday court date after negotiations dragged well beyond a Friday deadline. ... The bid would preserve 425 Sears stores and up to 50,000 jobs across the United States. ... A liquidation would put roughly 68,000 people Sears now employs out of work," write Reuters' Jessica DiNapoli and Mike Spector.