Disney Star Selena Gomez Teams Up With Sears to Inspire Teens and Tweens to 'Arrive' in Style for Back-to-School

Disney Star Selena Gomez Teams Up With Sears to Inspire Teens and Tweens to 'Arrive' in Style for Back-to-School

Students Are Invited to Participate in the Sears Arrive Air Band Casting Call

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill., July 30 /PRNewswire/ -- Actress, singer and budding fashionista Selena Gomez has teamed up with Sears to inspire teens and tweens to bring out their inner rock star and go back to school with style. Best known for her starring role as Alex Russo in the hit Disney Channel television series, "Wizards of Waverly Place," Gomez demonstrates how easy, affordable and fun it is to express your personality through fashion and music.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090730/CG54012)

Sears and Gomez have come together as part of the retailer's back to school integrated marketing campaign. She will also be hosting the Sears Arrive Air Band Casting Call - to create the first-ever Sears Air Band, which will perform at the MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) this fall.

Music & Fashion Come Together

"Music and fashion are two of the ways I really get to express myself," said Gomez. "I think a lot of kids my age feel the same way. How I am feeling on any given day really influences the type of music I listen to and how I dress and that's one of the reasons I am working with Sears, because they have such a wide variety of different fashions, you can always find the styles that fit your own personal look."

During the back-to-school campaign, Gomez debuts a variety of Sears looks that all infuse various fashion personalities. For example, skate-style outfits will feature bold colors and geometric patterns. Rocker styles are edgy and use dark or muted colors. Hip-hop styles have lots of flare and feature accessories such as cool hats and belts. Pop styles tend to be trendy and mix and match lots of dressy elements with casual pieces.

"For teens and tweens, fashion says a lot about their personalities - and back-to-school is a perfect time for them to define their look," says Melanie Henson, chief marketing officer, Sears Apparel. "Sears has the style and a wide assortment for any personality at an affordable value that makes fashion attainable for families when they start their back-to-school shopping."

The golden rule of teen fashion is to make your style all about you. But cool looks aren't so cool if they don't work for you, so if you're not completely into it, the Sears Satisfaction Guarantee lets customers return their merchandise at any time within 90 days of purchase.

Sears Arrive Air Band Casting Call

At the hub of Sears back-to-school fashion and fun is www.Arrivelounge.com, an online destination where visitors can see Selena up close in Sears back-to-school gear, play arcade games, check out the hottest new fashion trends and participate in the Sears Arrive Air Band Casting Call. The person that Sears selects will perform will perform on the red carpet with the Sears Arrive Air Band at the MTV VMAs on Sunday, Sept. 13, 2009 in New York City!

Four band members have been selected to be a part of the Arrive Air Band and Sears will be selecting one more member to complete the band. Now through Tuesday, Aug. 11, potential rock stars between the ages of eight and 16 can participate in the Sears Arrive Air Band Casting Call two ways - by uploading their audition video online at www.Arrivelounge.com or by visiting a mall in 10 select cities across the country - where auditions will be held and videos submitted.

Sears is partnering with MTV to conduct casting calls from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 1 in the following cities: Bloomington, Minn.; Burlington, Mass.; Mesquite, Tex.; Miami, Fla.; Schaumburg, Ill.; Tacoma, Wash.; Torrance, Calif.; Troy, Mich.; Wayne, N.J. and Willow Grove, Pa. Participants are invited to bring their "A-game" with their favorite version of the "Don't Go Back, Arrive" song, routine and look. Each participant will receive a free t-shirt. Sears will choose the fifth band member at the end of August.

For more information, visit www.Arrivelounge.com. Tweens can follow the Sears Air Band Casting Call with Lounge Live updates on ArriveLounge.com.

About Sears Holdings Corporation

Sears Holdings Corporation is the nation's fourth largest broadline retailer with approximately 3,900 full-line and specialty retail stores in the United States and Canada. Sears Holdings is the leading home appliance retailer as well as a leader in tools, lawn and garden, home electronics and automotive repair and maintenance. Key proprietary brands include Kenmore, Craftsman and DieHard, and a broad apparel offering, including such well-known labels as Lands' End, Jaclyn Smith and Joe Boxer, as well as the Apostrophe and Covington brands. It also has Martha Stewart Everyday products, which are offered exclusively in the U.S. by Kmart. We are the nation's largest provider of home services, with more than 12 million service calls made annually. Sears Holdings Corporation operates through its subsidiaries, including Sears, Roebuck and Co. and Kmart Corporation. For more information, visit Sears Holdings' Web site at www.searsholdings.com.

About Selena Gomez

Born July 22, 1992, in Dallas, Texas, Gomez began her acting career at age seven in the television series "Barney & Friends." In 2003, she was cast in "Spy Kids 3D" and then shot to stardom after being cast in Disney Channel's now Emmy Award-nominated series "Wizards of Waverly Place." Among her recent credits is Disney Channel's "Princess Protection Program" which ranks as the #1 TV movie among Kids 6-11 and Tweens 9-14 for the year-to-date. It is also the #1 movie telecast on cable TV with Total Viewers and Households. She'll next star in "Wizards of Waverly Place The Movie" premiering in August on Disney Channel. Gomez also starred in "Another Cinderella Story" which was released by Warner Home, had a voice role in the feature film "Horton Hears a Who" and stars in the feature film "Ramona and Beezus" scheduled for release in 2010. She has a recording contract with Disney's Hollywood Records, performs on the "Wizards of Waverly Place" soundtrack and is recording her solo recording debut for release in September.

Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090730/CG54012
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Sears Holdings Corporation

CONTACT: Shannelle Armstrong of Sears Holdings, +1-847-286-0715,
shannelle.armstrong@searshc.com; or Carolyn Goldberg of Euro RSCG Worldwide
PR, +1-212-367-6947, carolyn.goldberg@eurorscg.com, for Sears Holdings
Corporation

Web Site: http://www.searsholdings.com/

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