Sears Is Turning Shuttered Stores Into Data Centers

miller60 writes "Servers may soon fill the aisles where shoppers once roamed. Sears Holdings is seeking to convert former Sears and Kmart stores into Internet data hubs. Some stand-alone stores and distribution centers may be repurposed as data centers, while mall-based stores can be converted into disaster recovery sites, the company says, offering access to stores and eateries for displaced workers who may be on site for weeks. Then there's the wireless tower opportunity. Seventy percent of the U.S. population lives within 10 miles of a Sears or Kmart store, and these rooftops can be leased to fill gaps in cell coverage. It's not the first effort to convert stores into IT infrastructure, as Rackspace is headquartered in an old mall, and companies have built data centers in malls in Indiana and Maryland. But Sears, which operates 25 million square feet of real estate, hopes to make this strategy work at scale." Also at Slash DataCenter.

Comments

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[sinij]

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I don't understand why place data centers in urban mall environments where property value is supposedly higher?

Re:New HDD in Isle 6, New HDD in Isle 6!

[Aryden]

Actually it's because of leases. Generally, when an "anchor store" such as sears, belk, etc move into a mall or strip mall, they sign 10-30 year leases on the space. Unlike your general inline stores which sign 6 month, 1 year or variable lease agreements. They have to pay that lease out whether they maintain the store or shut it down. In many places, it is generally cheaper for them to vacate the store and just continue paying the lease without supporting the store itself. I see this as a way for them to continue to honor their lease while being able to generate revenue from it. Additionally, the costs for build a datacenter would be cheaper because you already have loads of parking, electrical infrastructure, security (joke) etc.