Located at the corner of Hill Avenue and Lovejoy Road, the store has provided tune-ups for lawnmowers, appliances parts and even flashlights and batteries.
Sears is closing about 200 such centers nationwide. The company reported a 62-percent drop in fiscal second-quarter earnings in August, citing decreased consumer spending in the face of a damaged national economy.
"We were involved with sewing machines, power tools, everything Sears sells," said store manager Tim Farrell. "We'd handle about 30 repairs or tune-ups a month. Forty during the summer."
Farrell, a retired Air Force master sergeant, is looking for a new job.
Dianne Curtis, the other full-time employee at the center, has spent 23 years with Sears. She hopes there will be a new position for her with the company.
The Sears Parts & Service Center in Panama City is also closing, but the one in Pensacola will stay open.
To see more of the Northwest Florida Daily News or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.nwfdailynews.com. Copyright (c) 2008, Northwest Florida Daily News, Fort Walton Beach Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.

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