Sears is making an investment that could save it from the grave

Many analysts believe Sears is headed for oblivion.

The troubled retailer's sales are continuing to decline, falling nearly 14% in the most recent quarter.

Shares at Sears Holding Corp. are at a multiyear low, and the brand is continuing to close stores.

But now, Sears appears to be investing in the future for the first time in years.

The brand has just hired former Amazon logistics chief Girish Lakshman. He'll be in charge of online fulfillment.

Lakshman is the latest in a series of high-profile new hires.

Sears also hired former Hewlett-Packard senior executive Lynn Pendergrass to run the hardlines business and Belkin veteran Tom Park to run the Kenmore, Craftsman, and DieHard brands.

Sears' hiring of industry veterans show it is trying to right the ship after losing more than $6 billion since 2012.

For a long time, Sears executives weren't doing much to improve business, Steven Azarbad, chief investment officer at Maglan Capital and an expert in distressed retail companies, told Business Insider in August.

"How many more quarters of negative sales can you handle as a business without being forced to close?" Azarbad said. "They're not pumping cash into turning this into a real retailer or business, and merchandise looks sparse for the most part."

Hiring an industry star for the online business shows Sears, which started out as a catalog business without stores, is investing in the future.