Even with this latest reprieve, Sears' long-term survival remains an open question. Lampert hasn't put forth any specific reinvention plans and the company still faces cutthroat competition from Amazon, Target and Walmart. Lampert steered Sears into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in October. The company's corporate parent, which also owns Kmart, had 687 stores and 68,000 employees at the time of the filing. [Source: Dallas News]