Even though the doors to his Sears franchise outlet will officially close on Monday, Karim Kassam says the store will go on, under a new name, of course.

The longtime owner of the Sears Hometown store in Airdrie, Alta., north of Calgary, told CTV Calgary that he has been a registered dealer for the retailer for the past 11 years. Before that, Kassam worked as a Sears’ salesperson for 13 years.

“Altogether 24 years in business with Sears. It’s very sad,” Kassam said on Friday.

Sears Canada has been under court protection from creditors since June when the embattled retailer announced its plans to cut thousands of jobs and close its remaining stores.

“You never expect a big company like Sears to go under,” Kassam said. “It was a shock.”

Kassam, who also owned the Okotoks Sears location that closed earlier this fall, said he’s still waiting for Sears to pay him commission for sales he made from October to the present. He would typically receive those payments within 30 days, he said.

“Sears is in court protection so we haven’t been paid since October,” he explained. “It was a little scary.”

Joel Shaffer, a spokesperson for Sears Canada, told CTV Calgary that Kassam and other franchise owners will receive their outstanding payments in the near future.

“The balance of payments owing will be paid on or before December 31,” the statement read. “Sears Canada is on target to make these payments.”

Kassam said he still has about $100,000 in remaining Sears’ merchandise to sell before he closes the store on Monday. Despite this, the franchise owner has already started moving in new stock to sell at his new independently-owned business called Airdrie Appliance and Furniture.

“We are not letting go any of our staff,” Kassam said. “We still have the full eight people staying here with us, so [it’s] business as usual, but just no Sears or no Kenmore name.”

Irene Herron, a Sears’ employee for approximately 15 years, said she’s glad Kassam plans to keep the doors of the store open.

“He knows the Sears customer, he knows the Sears way, he knows the Sears pricing,” she said. “In a different way, Sears will continue.”

The new Airdrie Appliance and Furniture store will continue to carry parts for Kenmore appliances that will be sourced through third-party manufacturers, Kassam said.

With a report from CTV Calgary’s Shaun Frenette