Sears' and Kmart's sales increased for the first time in years - but it's probably not going to save the business

Jessica Rinaldi/Reuters

Sears' same-store sales increased for the first time in years.

• Sears' and Kmart's sales increased for the first time in years in the last quarter - the same quarter that the brands' parent company filed for bankruptcy.
• Sears' same-store sales increased 3.2% and Kmart sales increased 6.1%.
• Total revenue dropped $840 million during the same period, due to 101 store closures and shoppers redeeming Shop Your Way points.

Kmart's and Sears' sales increased for the first time in years, in the same quarter that the company filed for bankruptcy.

On Thursday, Sears Holdings reported that Sears' same-store sales in the US increased by 3.2% in the third quarter. Kmart sales increased 6.1% in the same period. The last time Sears posted sales growth was in 2010, according to CNBC.

However, the retailer still saw revenue decline by millions of dollars. Total revenue was $2.74 billion, down from $3.58 billion in the third quarter of 2017.

The decline in revenue was due in part to store closures, with the company shuttering 73 Sears and 28 Kmart stores across the US in the quarter. When Sears filed for bankruptcy in October, the company said that it planned to close close 142 stores before the end of the year, with liquidation sales beginning immediately.

Read more: Sears is closing hundreds of stores and keeping the rest open through the holiday season - but shoppers won't get the blowout deals they might be expecting

Customers cashing out their Shop Your Way points also contributed to roughly $49 million in revenue decline, according to the company. Shop Your Way is Sears Holdings' rewards program, which allows customers to earn points for their purchases. With the company filing for bankruptcy and closing hundreds of stores, it looks like many shoppers took the opportunity to use up their points while they still could.

Sears filed for bankruptcy on October 15 and announced that Eddie Lampert would be stepping down from his role as the company's chief executive. The retailer had already closed hundreds of stores in 2018 in an effort to keep more than 500 locations up and running - at least through the holidays.