Women prefer shopping at Goodwill over Sears

Avid thrift shop hunters Maddie Rhodes and Jordan Rabidou at their home in Bridgeport, Conn. Rhodes is wearing a striped dress purchased at Goodwill in Westport, Conn. for $28 and cowboy boots bought at the Goodwill in Allentown, PA for $7 in 2005. less Avid thrift shop hunters Maddie Rhodes and Jordan Rabidou at their home in Bridgeport, Conn. Rhodes is wearing a striped dress purchased at Goodwill in Westport, Conn. for $28 and cowboy boots bought at the ... more Photo: Autumn Driscoll Photo: Autumn Driscoll Image 1 of / 3 Caption Close Women prefer shopping at Goodwill over Sears 1 / 3 Back to Gallery

Sears is losing its female shoppers. This is just one in a string of ongoing problems for the retail chain.

The Motley Fool reported in January that "even after a 90% decline in price over the last decade, little value remains in Sears Holdings' shares. And so, as consumers increasingly shun Sears' stores, investors should also stay well clear of the near-death retailer's stock."

In January Business Insider reported that JC Penney plans to start selling appliances, which would be a major blow for the already struggling Sears.

"Many experts believe Sears is past the point of being able to return to its post as a major US retailer. In fact, it's in danger of not existing at all," Business Insider wrote.

"Sears is like a rudderless ship, devoid of compass heading, manned by a demoralized crew and worth nothing more than the old rotten boards and nails it's made of," Doug Stephens, founder of the industry website Retail Prophet and author of "The Retail Revival: Re-Imagining Business for the New Age of Consumerism," told Business Insider in December.

Luckily for Sears, for now the store still leads in appliances, according to Retail Dive. However, it is becoming less and less of a destination for women's clothing.

Read the full Retail Dive report here.

Retail Dive reports that a survey in January by Prosper Analytics & Insights for the National Retail Federation shows that just one percent of shoppers say Sears is their favorite place for women's clothing. The retailer ranked behind Goodwill.

Retail Dive makes note that this fact isn't as alarming as it may sounds since many of this generation's female shoppers are interested in vintage and second-hand fashions.

In fact, Goodwill has been capitalizing on this trend and has been "opening some 60 boutique-style stores nationwide in the past four years, featuring more upscale second-hand and vintage finds," Retail Dive writes.