IF YOU CAN’T BEAT ‘EM… Sears to Sell Kenmore Brand on Amazon.

Sears Holdings Corp. SHLD 10.60% said Thursday it will start selling its Kenmore appliances on Amazon, loosening its grip on one of its historic product lines and becoming the latest big American brand to capitulate to the online-retail giant.

News of Amazon’s move into appliances, one of the categories it hasn’t deeply penetrated, rippled through the industry. Investors dumped shares of big appliance sellers that have been benefiting from Sears’s retreat. Lowe’s Cos. tumbled; Home Depot Inc. HD -4.09% and Best Buy Co. BBY -3.93% fell 4% apiece.

Amazon’s rapid growth has displaced traditional stores and left even powerful brands unable to ignore it. Nike Inc., one of the biggest holdouts, recently decided to start selling directly to Amazon.

All within Prime, nothing outside Prime, nothing against Prime.