Also, unlike in the recession's depth, the government is offering no rebate incentives to buy white goods. With sales slow, Sears competitors like Best Buy Co. increased discounts, further hurting Sears. To add insult to injury, competitors also beat Sears on electronics' prices, and Bentonville, Ark.-based Wal-Mart Stores Inc. brought back its lay-away program, which ate directly into Kmart's holiday sales, Mr. McGinley says. "It's like pushing on a wall that has cracks in it," Mr. McGinley says. "When it breaks, no one knows." Despite Sears' steady sales decline, there may yet be an exit strategy—if the company can hold on. One option would be to stick it out until the economy picks up and then spin off its still-valuable Kenmore, Craftsman and DieHard brands, leverage the stores' real estate as much as possible and sell the auto centers and home-service business, which sends maintenance people to customers' homes to fix appliances.