Sears its naming rights to the building expired in 2003 it remained the Sears Tower until early 2009. In March 2009 London-based insurer Willis Group Holdings, Ltd., was given the building's naming rights to encourage them to occupy the building. The official renaming as the "Willis Tower" took place on Thursday, July 16, 2009, during a public ceremony hosted by Willis Group Holdings. In the 1990s, the company began divesting itself of many non-retail entities, which were detrimental to the company's bottom line. Sears spun off its financial services arm which included brokerage business Dean Witter Reynolds and Discover Card. It
Sears Canada of Distinctive Appliances and the sale was due to be completed in December 2017. The headquarters were in Downtown Toronto, inside an eight-story complex which was formerly the home to Sears' flagship location within the Toronto Eaton Centre until 2014. The headquarters moved there from 222 Jarvis Street after that building was sold in 2007. The lower four floors of the Eaton Centre location remained in use for retail, including a three-floor Nordstrom store from fall 2016 onwards, while the upper four floors continued as Sears Canada headquarters. This headquarters remained active until the retailer completed liquidation on January 14,