Kmart Memories

[Duke]

One of America’s most iconic retail chains, Kmart, set to close last full-size store in US

The store, located in Bridgehampton, New York, on the South Fork of Long Island, will close its doors for good in October.

nypost.com

And with that, a big part of what most of us grew up with is gone. Do you have any personal memories about Kmart, or any extinct chain store/restaurant, for that matter?

 

[Debi]

Kmart blue light specials! Always fun for us kids to see that thing light up! lol I remember they sold some great sub sandwiches, too.

We always loved shopping there with mom. It was kind of a big deal, as we had to go to a "bigger" town that had one, and it meant we as kids were probably going to get something while there. Most school clothes were Kmart specials.

And what a toy department! Usually had more than JC Penney or Wards, both of those stores also pretty much gone now as well.

 

[garnetsilver]

I remember shopping there when my daughter was a toddler. We always stopped for a snack; usually ice cream or hamburger and fries. I loved their clothing styles, because they were good for everyday wear. Also liked their toy selection, especially around Christmas!

 

[Selectric]

Pretty sure the 'gumball machine incident' was in Kmart. Will never forget that. Won't forget my brother sneaking onto the store intercom and making various announcements lol. The huge ventilation registers on the ceiling that looked like the spaceships from the V mini series. Can't remember who had better Matchbox cars or Hotwheels...Kmart or Jamesway?

 

[Duke]

I remember the submarine sandwiches. If you waited around until closing time, you could get them at half price. A few years ago Mrs Duke found the recipe for the Kmart sub on one of those restaurant "copycat" recipe sites.

You could see the beginning of the end of Kmart in the late 90s/early 2000s. The stores were not being well maintained, they were dirty, inventory was hit or miss, and the employees didn't seem to care.

 

[Tworivers71]

One of America’s most iconic retail chains, Kmart, set to close last full-size store in US

The store, located in Bridgehampton, New York, on the South Fork of Long Island, will close its doors for good in October.

nypost.com

And with that, a big part of what most of us grew up with is gone. Do you have any personal memories about Kmart, or any extinct chain store/restaurant, for that matter?

I was fired from Kmart in 1993 for doing my job. That’s my memory. Lol.

 

[Paulm]

i loved their tool department and sporting goods dept., still have a few power tools from there I bought 25 or 30 years ago... lots of memories from when i was a child shopping there with my mom. hard to believe there was a time when that was the big "discount" type store and there was no such thing as walmart.

 

[Lynne]

I was surprised to know there was still a store in business. I have a lot of Kmart memories. The Subs at the dood counter were the best. We did a lot of school cloths shopping there. Like Duke described above, the decline was obvious. I was sad to see it go. They’ve been gone a long time here in Michigan.

 

[damon]

I was fired from Kmart in 1993 for doing my job. That’s my memory. Lol.

You were fired? That's sucks

 

[Paintman]

Pretty sure the 'gumball machine incident' was in Kmart. Will never forget that. Won't forget my brother sneaking onto the store intercom and making various announcements lol. The huge ventilation registers on the ceiling that looked like the spaceships from the V mini series. Can't remember who had better Matchbox cars or Hotwheels...Kmart or Jamesway?

Selectric, those huge ceiling HVAC diffusers you remembered is my K Mart memory. I painted a bunch of stores as a maintenance re-do.

Those things are 12' in diameter, 11 or 16 per store.

Debi, when I painted one of the Hammond stores, on Indianapolis Blvd., the rumors of closing were running high. The store manager wanted to make sure I was paid. I swear I didn't ask .... he brought me into his office and counted out $ 7 grand fresh out of the safe !

Inside baseball about K Mart closing. 2 things and all due to real estate. The corporate raider who bought and merged Sears & K Mart just wanted the land they already owned outright.

When Kresge was the owner, he never bought the real estate. He would take out 99 year leases - but these became older, smaller stores in bad neighborhoods. It became a financial black hole where they were paying for unprofitable or closed stores.

Anyway, I was a regular customer and bought my washer & dryer there 10years ago, and the Super K's had a nice garden center.