(WWJ) More struggling Sears and Kmart stores are closing, including two in Michigan.

Sears Holding announced on Wednesday that it will close 26 large-format stores in late October.

The list includes the Sears store at Fashion Square Mall in Saginaw and the Sears on S. Westnedge Ave. in Portage, near Kalamazoo.

"Over the past several months, we have worked hard to strengthen our vendor relationships, return our inventory levels to normal, and improve customer satisfaction and operations; however, we have faced a number of challenges returning our stores to sustainable levels of productivity, including differences with Sears Holdings over our purchase agreement and a generally weak retail environment. These challenges have unfortunately affected our performance and limited our strategic choices," the company said, in a release.

"After careful review of where we are today, we believe the right course for the company is to accelerate the expansion of our smaller store formats which includes opening additional Home & Life stores and adding several hundred Sears Hometown stores after the Sears Hometown and Outlet transaction closes."

After taking these latest steps, the company said it will continue to evaluate its remaining Sears and Kmart stores, and can't rule out additional store closures in the near term.

"Our goal remains to return the company to profitability and preserve as many jobs as possible in the communities we serve," the company added.

Liquidation sales are expected to start at the affected stores next week.

This news comes as a scant few Sears and Kmart stores remain open in the metro Detroit area. Following multiple earlier closures, shoppers can still find Sears in the Livonia and Westland Center malls. About half-a-dozen Kmart stores still exist in the state, including in Warren, Waterford and Belleville.