Citi Retail Services and Sears Holdings Announce Extended Relationship and Shop Your Way® Benefits
May 21 2018 - 8:00AM
Business Wire
Enhanced rewards, with industry-leading 5%
back in points on gas purchases
Citi and Sears Holdings are pleased to announce the long-term
extension of their 15-year co-brand and private label credit card
relationship along with long-term marketing arrangements that
include ongoing enhancements to the Shop Your Way® Mastercard
rewards program.
Shop Your Way Mastercard cardholders will now enjoy generous
benefits every day that previously were only available on a
promotional basis. These cardholders will automatically earn more
Shop Your Way points, including:
- 5% back in points on eligible purchases
made at gas stations;
- 3% back in points on eligible purchases
at grocery stores and restaurants; [5% and 3% back on the first
$10,000 of combined eligible purchases made annually on gas,
groceries and restaurants and 1% thereafter]
- 2% back in points on eligible purchases
made at Sears and Kmart; and
- 1% back in points on all other eligible
purchases.
Points can easily be redeemed on purchases ranging from everyday
household consumables sold at Kmart to larger items such as kitchen
appliances sold by Sears or towards a pair of glasses at Sears
Optical. There is no minimum redemption threshold and no need for
certificates or gift cards – members can see their points online or
on their Shop Your Way app and instantly redeem them towards
purchases in store or online. Points earned with the card are also
combinable with other Shop Your Way point offers through Shop Your
Way partners such as Uber and Uber Eats, Gas Buddy, Avis Budget
Group, Synapse (division of Meredith), fuboTV, Truxx and more.
Visit shopyourway.com for more information on how to earn
points.
“We are pleased to extend our long-standing, successful
relationship with Sears. The extension provides for strong
long-term economic value for both Citi and Sears, and we are
especially proud to provide enhanced benefits to our Shop Your Way
Mastercard cardmembers every day, at the places they shop most,”
said Craig Vallorano, Head of Citi Retail Services. “Consistent
with other top-of-wallet credit cards, more than 70% of customer
spend on our Citi-Sears general purpose cards occurs at merchants
beyond Sears, so this enhanced rewards structure is designed to
deliver strong value for Shop Your Way card customers as well.”
“We’re extremely proud of our longstanding relationship with
Citi and are excited that this best-in-class offer which rewards
Shop Your Way members for activity in their daily lives is now an
ongoing part of the value proposition for cardholders,” said Edward
S. Lampert, Chairman & CEO of Sears Holdings. “The Shop Your
Way Mastercard is a cornerstone of the Shop Your Way engagement
platform which provides generous rewards, partnerships and
experiences. We saw a strong volume of card issuances in 2017 and
we look forward to building on that momentum as the power of the
Shop Your Way platform allows us to personalize experiences and
make life easier and more rewarding for every cardholder.”
In conjunction with the extension of the agreement, Citi will
pay Sears $425 million ($400 million of which has been received)
upon entry into the amendment, which encompasses a number of
program changes.
The shared economics of the program will remain substantially
consistent with the existing agreement through December 31, 2020,
and will be performance-based thereafter. The amendment removes
Sears’ right to purchase certain portfolio assets previously
included in the program, and for the term of the extension, removes
its purchase right to the remaining program assets. Sears will have
the right to purchase remaining program assets in certain
circumstances, including at the end of another extension term (if
it elects to extend the program and subject to the satisfaction of
certain conditions).
Sears Holdings was advised on the transaction by Goldman Sachs
and Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz. Citi was advised on the
transaction by Davis Wright Tremaine LLP, and Davis Polk &
Wardwell.
About CitiCiti, the leading global bank, has
approximately 200 million customer accounts and does business in
more than 160 countries and jurisdictions. Citi provides consumers,
corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of
financial products and services, including consumer banking and
credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage,
transaction services, and wealth management.
About Sears Holdings CorporationSears Holdings
Corporation (NASDAQ: SHLD) is a leading integrated retailer focused
on seamlessly connecting the digital and physical shopping
experiences to serve our members - wherever, whenever and however
they want to shop. Sears Holdings is home to Shop Your Way®, a
social shopping platform offering members rewards for shopping at
Sears and Kmart as well as with other retail partners across
categories important to them. The Company operates through its
subsidiaries, including Sears, Roebuck and Co. and Kmart
Corporation, with full-line and specialty retail stores
across the United States. For more information,
visit www.searsholdings.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements intended
to qualify for the safe harbor from liability established by the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Whenever used,
words such as "will," "expect," and other terms of similar meaning
are intended to identify such forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements, including these, are based on the
current beliefs and expectations of our management and are subject
to significant risks, assumptions and uncertainties, many of which
are beyond Sears Holdings’ control, that may cause our actual
results, performance or achievements to be materially different
from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or
implied by these forward-looking statements. Detailed descriptions
of risks, uncertainties and factors relating to Sears Holdings are
discussed in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and other
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. While we
believe that our forecasts and assumptions are reasonable, we
caution that actual results may differ materially. We intend the
forward-looking statements to speak only as of the time made and do
not undertake to update or revise them as more information becomes
available, except as required by law.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180521005378/en/
Media:CitiDeirdre Leahy,
212-559-3296deirdre.leahy@citi.comorSears HoldingsHoward Riefs,
847-286-7562