The demise of Kmart

[bcla]

I saw a recent article in my local news source that indicates that the Kmart in South Lake Tahoe, CA is going to close in August and has already started its clearance sales. That will apparently leave California with one remaining Kmart once it closes.

https://www.tahoedailytribune.com/news/longtime-south-lake-tahoe-retailer-kmart-closing-this-summer/
https://www.ktvu.com/news/soon-there-will-be-only-one-kmart-left-in-california

When I was a kid, Kmart was the big discount retailer. We didn't have any other discount stores around here. There was Woolworths, but that wasn't quite the same with a larger range. No Walmart or Target in my area back in the 70s or 80s. I saw the slow decline. The one closest to home closed, although a newer one wasn't that far away. I shopped at one in grad school. When I moved to Silicon Valley I'd spend time at the one in Santa Clara because it was the only discount store in the area, although now there are a lot of Target stores in the area.

This is kind of sad, but I realize that it was inevitable. Not sure if the purchase of Sears was all that helpful to either brand.

 

[ronandannette]

I feel you. They're all already gone Canada wide - no Kmart, no Sears, no Target. The state of Canadian bricks-and-mortar retailing is in shambles.

 

[usnuzuloose]

I saw a recent article in my local news source that indicates that the Kmart in South Lake Tahoe, CA is going to close in August and has already started its clearance sales. That will apparently leave California with one remaining Kmart once it closes.

https://www.tahoedailytribune.com/news/longtime-south-lake-tahoe-retailer-kmart-closing-this-summer/
https://www.ktvu.com/news/soon-there-will-be-only-one-kmart-left-in-california

When I was a kid, Kmart was the big discount retailer. We didn't have any other discount stores around here. There was Woolworths, but that wasn't quite the same with a larger range. No Walmart or Target in my area back in the 70s or 80s. I saw the slow decline. The one closest to home closed, although a newer one wasn't that far away. I shopped at one in grad school. When I moved to Silicon Valley I'd spend time at the one in Santa Clara because it was the only discount store in the area, although now there are a lot of Target stores in the area.

This is kind of sad, but I realize that it was inevitable. Not sure if the purchase of Sears was all that helpful to either brand.

I haven't even shopped a Kmart in forever. I did not even think there was any left.

 

[EricLaurie]

I was so sad to see them all go in my area. I have such great memories of my dad getting paid every other Friday night and us all going to the bank with him to cash the check. Then off to dinner at McDonald’s and to do our shopping at Kmart. My aunt worked in the checkout area so we would see her there, too. Always loved our Kmart trips!

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

This is kind of sad, but I realize that it was inevitable. Not sure if the purchase of Sears was all that helpful to either brand.

The purchase wasn't meant to be helpful. It was meant to do exactly what it did. Suck the companies dry, sell off high performing assets and leave a dead husk behind. All the talk otherwise that they put out was nothing but beaver biscuits.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

I've shopped at the one in South Lake Tahoe many times. Like other Kmart stores I've seen, it always seemed to be stuck in the 70s. The floors and fixtures are old and dingy looking. Shelves are not regularly restocked. Merchandise is all over the place, like no one goes through and neatens up after a busy day. Several years ago, we went there looking for bathroom rugs and there were like two choices and a bunch of empty shelves. We found a much larger selection at the TJ Maxx down the street.

It's sad that the chain is going away. But if they all look like the Tahoe store, I'm not surprised that people are no longer wanted to shop there.

 

[amcnj]

All the Kmarts I was familiar with have already closed. But I think there are still a few in the state. It seemed to me that Kmart was already in bad shape when they merged with Sears. I have always wondered just what the parties involved thought the outcome would be when they merged two dying brands. Did they have a strategy that actually might have saved both, or was it just a desperation move?

 

[amcnj]

This is kind of sad, but I realize that it was inevitable. Not sure if the purchase of Sears was all that helpful to either brand.

The purchase wasn't meant to be helpful. It was meant to do exactly what it did. Suck the companies dry, sell off high performing assets and leave a dead husk behind. All the talk otherwise that they put out was nothing but beaver biscuits.

Answers my questions! Do you think it prolonged or hastened the demise of each brand?

 

[kanerf]

All gone from Northern Virginia as well. I think there are a few Sears stores left, but not many.

 

[bcla]

I've shopped at the one in South Lake Tahoe many times. Like other Kmart stores I've seen, it always seemed to be stuck in the 70s. The floors and fixtures are old and dingy looking. Shelves are not regularly restocked. Merchandise is all over the place, like no one goes through and neatens up after a busy day. Several years ago, we went there looking for bathroom rugs and there were like two choices and a bunch of empty shelves. We found a much larger selection at the TJ Maxx down the street.

It's sad that the chain is going away. But if they all look like the Tahoe store, I'm not surprised that people are no longer wanted to shop there.

They were all pretty similar. The one in South Lake Tahoe was the only discount store of its kind in the entire area. Other than that store, the closest discount stores would be in Carson City or Placerville. I'm not even sure why that was there. There's plenty of retail in the Lake Tahoe region - especially supermarkets like Raley's and Safeway.

The thing I most looked forward to at our closest Kmart was and Icee machine near the front with loss leader prices. However, I don't think I ever had anything at the restaurant in the back.

 

[bcla]

All the Kmarts I was familiar with have already closed. But I think there are still a few in the state. It seemed to me that Kmart was already in bad shape when they merged with Sears. I have always wondered just what the parties involved thought the outcome would be when they merged two dying brands. Did they have a strategy that actually might have saved both, or was it just a desperation move?

I think the hint was that they might be doing it to eventually sell off the valuable assets. Kmart didn't really have any valuable brands. Sears at least had Craftsman and DieHard, which are now sold off.

 

[VandVsmama]

There haven’t been any Kmarts around in my neck of the woods for a few years. The market changed and Kmart didn’t keep up with the times and it understandably went the way of the dodo bird.

 

[lynxstch]

Our K Marts have been gone forever. I miss them, they had a lot of Martha Stewart mdse. I still use pans from the set I bought 20 years ago, they have outlasted more expensive ones.

 

[BlueStarryHat]

I remember when the Kmart in South Philly opened up as the anchor store in the new strip mall. It was a huge deal. I actually hated the place because I was made to get all of my clothes from there. Not sorry to see it go.

 

[kymom99]

I worked at Kmart during high school and college. When I was there, there were regional managers who would make surprise visits and give the store managers heart attacks. In later years, it became a dump. No customer service, merchandise a mess, just a shame.

 

[kymom99]

They were all pretty similar. The one in South Lake Tahoe was the only discount store of its kind in the entire area. Other than that store, the closest would be Carson City or Placerville. I'm not even sure why. There's plenty of retail in the Lake Tahoe region - especially supermarkets like Raley's and Safeway.

The thing I most looked forward to at our closest Kmart was and Icee machine near the front with loss leader prices. However, I don't think I ever had anything at the restaurant in the back.

That was the “grill” where we spent our breaks.

 

[LuvOrlando]

Count me in as another person who had no idea they were still around.

Gotta be honest, I am soooo over malls and the big box shaped stores and am uggh with mail order. I hope the post-Covid world brings back the little mom and pops scattered everywhere where ya get to know the owners and clerks. I want to go into little shops on the bottom floors of homes with neighborhood business owners. I want to know what is offered is based on the taste of the business owner who will tell you why by way of friendly chit-chat... sigh.

 

[Kitty 34]

I feel you. They're all already gone Canada wide - no Kmart, no Sears, no Target. The state of Canadian bricks-and-mortar retailing is in shambles.

The first K-mart this small town girl ever entered was the one at the Sault (MI) on the Canadian side. I was 13. I thought it was the most awesome store I had ever been in! For quite some time I thought it was just a store in Canada and thus thought Canada was an awesome country! (Still love Canada btw)

There's a store a few miles from us that still has a K-Mart but it's not even what it used to be. I'm sad, because I always loved shopping at K-Mart.

 

[disneychrista]

The one in my town closed probably 20 years ago. The next closest one closed in late 2019. The third was a victim of the Tubbs fire in 2017.

Hadn’t been to any of them in close to 10 years.

 

[Kittyblue]

I haven't even shopped a Kmart in forever. I did not even think there was any left.

Same here. When the last one in my county closed I thought they all did. My mom was just saying the other day how she missed them.