Last Kmart closing

[abunaitoo]

The last Kmart on island is closing.
Kind of sad.
I liked to shop at Kmart more than Walmart.
I hope Sears can rebound.
Grew up with Sears.
Christmas catalog was the best.

[shaner]

We lost our last one here in northern central ohio in march. All we have is walmart now

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[mwhite49]

The real weird thing is that M Mart owns Sears. Makes hou pause and wonder whats next.

[richhodg66]

We lost the Sears in Manhattan recently. Lost the K-Mart there a while ago. Junction City, oddly, still has one of the small stores that focuses on things like appliances and lawn mowers and such. Salina still has a K-Mart and Topeka still has one of the three they used to have open.

The Dollar General stores sure seem to be doing well in the face of the Wal Mart onslaught. They just built a third one in Junction City (maybe 25,000 population) and we have ne here in Chapman which can't be but 4,000 people max. A lot of other small towns have them springing up. I guess you need to be enough different from Wal Mart to have a distinction if you want to compete against them.

I hate to see the old retailers go away too. There was a Montgomery Wards here when we first moved here. It's been gone nearly 20 years now and there's a Goodwill in the old building, but it bothers me every time I look at it.

[lylejb]

Yeah, it's strangely sad to see them go. We still have 3 kmarts around the Portland area but they are far enough away I don't go anymore. More worrisome to me is that Sears recently sold the craftsman tools brand to Stanley. I have and use many craftsman tools and have to wonder what the future holds.

[Bazoo]

Kmart closed here. There is probably one the Louisville, But I dont go there less I absolutely have to. I too enjoyed Kmart, to an extent. I am not a walmart hater though and go there regularly. Wherever has what i need.

[am44mag]

We lost the Sears in Manhattan recently. Lost the K-Mart there a while ago. Junction City, oddly, still has one of the small stores that focuses on things like appliances and lawn mowers and such. Salina still has a K-Mart and Topeka still has one of the three they used to have open.

The Dollar General stores sure seem to be doing well in the face of the Wal Mart onslaught. They just built a third one in Junction City (maybe 25,000 population) and we have ne here in Chapman which can't be but 4,000 people max. A lot of other small towns have them springing up. I guess you need to be enough different from Wal Mart to have a distinction if you want to compete against them.

I hate to see the old retailers go away too. There was a Montgomery Wards here when we first moved here. It's been gone nearly 20 years now and there's a Goodwill in the old building, but it bothers me every time I look at it.

I used to work at DG. I recall hearing that they were the biggest threat to Walmart. Most likely due to the fact that they are more convenient (closer parking, smaller store, quick checkouts, ect), and they are everywhere. Why go across town to Walmart when the DG around the corner has most of the stuff you need? They are a CHEAP company to work for though. They are literally paranoid about employee theft, pay you peanuts (as a shift manager, I made $8.25 an hr), and there were never enough employees working.

[richhodg66]

I used to work at DG. I recall hearing that they were the biggest threat to Walmart. Most likely due to the fact that they are more convenient (closer parking, smaller store, quick checkouts, ect), and they are everywhere. Why go across town to Walmart when the DG around the corner has most of the stuff you need? They are a CHEAP company to work for though. They are literally paranoid about employee theft, pay you peanuts (as a shift manager, I made $8.25 an hr), and there were never enough employees working.

Dollar General subscribes to the liquor store mentality of being within walking distance of your clientele. The three in Junction are located close to neighborhoods and you see people walking to and from them, the Wal Mart is out on the edge of town close to the interstate. They're also willing to put stores in little towns Wal Mart won't.

I have no idea what they're like to work for, but I like their business model and they figured it out; if you try to compete with Wal Mart on even footing, you get crushed (like K-Mart). You have to fill a different niche to make it.

I started a thread a few moths ago about retailing in America. We had a chain of stores in the Midwest called Alco, it was headquartered in Abilene just down the road. Watched the whole thing go down and it doesn't exist anymore inside of about ten years. I noticed a similar chain, Rose's, in the deep south is still going, we had one in my hometown, so at least some survive. I'm not a Wal Mart hater, but I try to support others too. Been shopping those Dollar General stores more and more lately.

[GhostHawk]

Fargo North Dakota and Moorhead Minnesota is down to 1 Kmart from 8.

Wife was there this weekend, picked up a few odds and ends.

We also do a fair amount of online shopping both Amazon and Walmart.
We live a little further out so Prime is not normally here in 2 days. Mostly its 3, with once and a while a 4.

Walmart takes a day longer but often has better prices. So we are comparison shopping more and more.

I even recently splurged for one of those Chinese Electric scooters from Amazon.
570$, came assembled, just had to slip handlebars and seat into place, tighten, and charge. I have been riding it every day, mostly short 4-6 blocks with dog to get him back into shape. But a few longer mile long cruises.

I have to charge it about once a week. They said it could be a month but it was here in 6 days. Now the wife wants one.

Have to say this retired life is not all bad.

[bedbugbilly]

There were two in Jackson, MI. We noticed the other day that the one on the west side was all closed up. Haven't been past the one on the east side but imagine if it isn't closed, it may soon be.

How did that song go . . . "but the times, they are a changing".

Technology is a good thing but it also costs jobs . . . I wouldn't be surprised if in a couple of years, you'll be able to order your kids from the "note" instead of having them the good old way?

I didn't realize that K-mart owns Sears - makes you wonder where that is headed? There is a Sears store in Jackson, MI that is still there but I have often wondered how it keeps hanging on.

[mozeppa]

bedbugbilly ...that was bob dylan 1962 or 63


western auto is what i miss.

where i bought all my B-B's for my first gun!

daisy... i miss you!

[sundog]

Yessir, Western Auto and Otasco. TG&Y was purdy good, too. Anyone still have a Ben Franklin store, or are they all gone?

[Handloader109]

Grew up in little town that was suburb of larger. TG&Y was about it for a decade, then a Howard's, it lasted 7 yrs maybe. Then Walmart. Fred's is another small retailer that has slowly grown, but I see dollar tree and Dollar general pushing them hard in lot of areas. Kmart here was **** for at least the 7yrs I've been here, closed down back in March. zero loss. Sears in mall is hanging on :-| by a thread.

[shooterg]

Craftsman tools all made in China now. I quit buying 'em, although I pick up USA made ones at the flea market still.
Never knew for sure who made the USA ones for Sears, but they were dang good tools.

[TexasGrunt]

Sears is circling the drain. They just announced another round of store closings. Most retail prognosticators say they'll be done by the end of the year. The final sale may go on longer than that through a closeout company but Sears will be gone.

[308Jeff]

The future is Amazon. Malls and the stores in them are dying faster than an ISIS platoon messing with an FA-18.

Even my dog food costs 15% less and UPS brings it here in 2 days !

It's the truth. Pretty soon there'll be nothing left but Amazon and Walmart.

It's been interesting to see it play out. Barnes and Noble killed B Dalton and the mom and pop places. Amazon is killing Barnes and Noble. It's all about being the bigger fish, and convenience/price for the consumer.

[Soundguy]

The last Kmart on island is closing.
Kind of sad.
I liked to shop at Kmart more than Walmart.
I hope Sears can rebound.
Grew up with Sears.
Christmas catalog was the best.

20 years ago, I loved kmart.. When it turned into basically a 2nd hand outlet store like Beales... and they stopped doing any maintenance on the stores, and it basically looked like an indoor flea market.. AND all their stuff costs more than other places.. .. I lost interest and quit going.

If you want cheap tools, you can't beat harbor freight, lowes, or walmart or rural king. Heck.. Target is better than kmart.. and I won't go in a target anymore.

I Do miss the kmart lunch counter and coke icee's

woolworths used to have a good lunch counter too.. .. but I digress.

clothes, shoes, etc.. walmart beats kmart on availability etc. and it's all chinese made anyway. if I am bying cheap walking shoes.. I can pay 15$ at walmart vs 19$ at kmart. it's a no brainer.

Sears killed themselves.. Kmart, sears, martha stewart.. that was all a bad dream.

Craftsman used to be good.. but it's made in the same places that other durable tools that cost 10% as much are made and have the same warranty... so it's name recognition only.

Only good lasting thing that came from sears was Discover..

[mold maker]

Kmart left as soon as Walmart announced a Super Store opening. Dollar General has opened 3 new local stores and left the strip mall. Five grocery chain stores closed as Walmart opened small local stores. Sears is still in the mall, but barely holding on.
I despise Amazon, but the choices are getting few and further between.
The choices we make today affect the ones we can make in the future.

[Soundguy]

Kmart closing/walmart coming in sounds like a good thing to me.

[Walkingwolf]

My father predicted Sears fall when they moved from their old stores to uppity mall stores, it just took longer than he thought. K Mart dying for the opposite reason, they didn't keep up their stores.

[Soundguy]

Kmarts here have been drying up for about 15 years. one store south, was so badly maintained, that the farm store that moved in to it's place had to heavily renovate just to sell bags of manure. ;)

[beezapilot]

Oddly, on the South end of town, the economically challenged section, we've a WallMart Neighborhood Market going in. Walking distance, convenience and common items, and you can order anything that WallMart sells and pick it up at that store with no shipping charge. Looks like they might be casting a gauntlet to DG.

[QUOTE=richhodg66;4108810]Dollar General subscribes to the liquor store mentality of being within walking distance of your clientele. The three in Junction are located close to neighborhoods and you see people walking to and from them, the Wal Mart is out on the edge of town close to the interstate. They're also willing to put stores in little towns Wal Mart won't.

[Soundguy]

Is there an aldi nearby?

Around here, aldi co locate with walmarts. Cash/equiv only, but generally technically beat wm prices, even if by a penny.

[TexasGrunt]

Kmart left as soon as Walmart announced a Super Store opening. Dollar General has opened 3 new local stores and left the strip mall. Five grocery chain stores closed as Walmart opened small local stores. Sears is still in the mall, but barely holding on.
I despise Amazon, but the choices are getting few and further between.
The choices we make today affect the ones we can make in the future.

I needed a selection of ATM fuses for my truck. Went to Walmart $18 for a box of 30 fuses. I thought that was a bit high, $8 delivered from Amazon for 120 fuses. I did pick up six 100% cotton tee shirts for $2 each, a can of acetone and a computer mouse for my wife. We also bought some groceries.

[jonp]

The real weird thing is that M Mart owns Sears. Makes hou pause and wonder whats next.

Yes and no. It was a kinda complex deal where Lampert took over Sears in an effort to save Kmart and will do away with the Kmart name and keep Sears selling off real estate which is Sears strong point. Interesting deal making. My take is that neither will survive. There is little reason for Sears to be in existence anymore. The mall real estate they have now which is the total value of the brand is plummeting with the decline of the brick and mortar stores.

[daniel lawecki]

Our last Sears & K-Mart stores are both closing as I type.

[SciFiJim]

The last Kmart on island is closing.
Kind of sad.
I liked to shop at Kmart more than Walmart.
I hope Sears can rebound.
Grew up with Sears.
Christmas catalog was the best.

Is that the one by Aloha Stadium? We always shopped there and the Makai market next door when vacationing in Hawaii.

[edler7]

I have 2 boxes of 7mm rifle ammo I bought years ago on markdown at K-Mart for 88 cents/box.

Those were the days !

[oldblinddog]

Is there an aldi nearby?

Around here, aldi co locate with walmarts. Cash/equiv only, but generally technically beat wm prices, even if by a penny.

Aldi is an EU store. Will not shop there.

[oldblinddog]

Kmart closing/walmart coming in sounds like a good thing to me.

Yep! +1 on that!

[MaryB]

Kmart near me went under years ago, local Sears is also on the way out from the rumor mill. Walmart online is beating Amazon on a lot of prices and over $25 ships free with no need to spend $99 a year on prime. I buy toilet paper by the case so I have it on hand, instead of having to drag it in the house from the store I let Walmart deliver it to my front porch! Walmart is not always the cheapest fr groceries, in MN Hyvee often beats them on pricing on a lot of things plus Hyvee has a much better selection when it comes to ethnic foods and spices where Walmart stocks the top movers only.

[Soundguy]

Aldi is an EU store. Will not shop there.

I don't shop there either, just noticing they seem to co locate.. when a walmart moves in, an aldi moves in next door to the walmart.

[Walkingwolf]

aldi does have some ok points, like having the lowest cost gluten free stuff possible. without having to eat cardboard.

sears and k mart were started in a time of basically ww2 guys coming home, and needing a place to shop that could ress them for church, work, hunting, provide a sandwich, and sell them a gun. BLUE COLLAR

The End of Monkey wards in the late 1980s tricked sears and k mart into going "high end holloywood" boutique.

After Martha stewert got dropped, kmart went into a weird super duper liberal political correctness sctick trying to become the destination store for Hispanics instead of dollar general and family dollar. It failed.

Monkey Ward going belly up after moving into the high rent district(malls) should have alerted Sears that they might have made the wrong move. Our family shopped a lot in Sears department store up until they moved into the mall. My dad hated malls, now that I am older I also hate them.

ETA at least Monkey Wards continued to sell firearms in the mall, Sears stopped as soon as they moved into the mall.

[Soundguy]

All this talk of older stores reminds me of JC Penny. I remember catalog show rooms, eyeglass and picture counters at sears, etc.

[Walkingwolf]

All this talk of older stores reminds me of JC Penny. I remember catalog show rooms, eyeglass and picture counters at sears, etc.

It was great the things that Sears sold, more like a farm store than a department store. Before the move, besides guns they usually had an assortment of go karts, and mini bikes. As well as complete vehicle motors on display stands. There was almost nothing you could not buy, or order.

[tdoyka]

kmart has been gone for years now, i believe it was '91 or '92? wal mart came in and destroyed everything. value city, hills, jc penny, etc... soon sears will be gone too, like their craftsman junk. boscov will be staying, but that is just a matter of time.

[dragon813gt]

boscov will be staying, but that is just a matter of time.
Not so sure about this w/ the founder passing away somewhat recently. He had to come back to save the company once. It's the only reason it's still around. It's definitely one of the better department stores in the area. But I don't buy anything there. I use it to try on clothes that I then buy from Amazon for less money. Why would I pay $50 in Boscov's when I can buy it for $32 on Amazon.

I do try to buy items locally. But it's really hard anymore. I wanted a vest to make airport security easier. Couldn't find one locally and I went to a lot of stores. Needed a travel wallet to keep my passport and a few credit cards in. Could only find really cheap quality ones. And they wanted a lot of money for what they were. In both cases I bought them through Amazon. I even did it w/ LOTO lock yesterday. I need four more on my van. I could pay around $25 a piece through Grainger. Or buy them for $9 a piece through Amazon.

I don't know what the future holds for brick and mortar stores. For some items they will always be a necessity. But for a lot of things they can never compete w/ the internet. Walmart is now offering a discount for ship to store purchases. This seems like the first attempt to keep less stock on hand in their stores. It will be interesting to see how this plays out over the coming decades.

[jcwit]

Aldi is an EU store. Will not shop there.

Why the problem with an EU store?

Youare likely buying chinese merchandise at other stores and likely typing ona chinese computor as am I.

[DerekP Houston]

Is there an aldi nearby?

Around here, aldi co locate with walmarts. Cash/equiv only, but generally technically beat wm prices, even if by a penny.

I'm an Aldi convert, nice small stores and quick to get just what i need. Walmart/HEB are cool if we need a lot of cleaning supplies or sundries that aren't carried but the huge line of registers with 2-3 open and backed up drives me nuts every time.

I must have missed the KMart heydey, they have always been gross and rundown as long as I can remember (only 34 though!) We visited a few growing up with my grandparents but i never saw the appeal. With Target on my boycott list my # of stores to visit is dwindling rapidly.

[mold maker]

When I was young, we drove 44 miles to the nearest K Mart and Sears. It was a real treat not to have to go to a different store for clothes, toys, tools, and yard supplies.
We usually made the trip at least once a year before school started or before Christmas.
As a young married couple K Mart, Sears, Bradford, Sky City, and several other such stores discovered our dollar base and moved close by.
In the last 15 years, every one but Sears is gone and now we have WalMart.
Although I long for the smaller stores because of walking issues, I can find almost everything needed under one roof, and if the electric cart doesn't die, do it without much walking.
I will say that Walmart ( 5 stores in 8 miles) has a price match program that gives me back the difference if they find a local better price on most of my receipt. They have free store pickup for most anything I order, or home delivery for a small fee.
The times, they are a changing !!!!!

[mold maker]

When I was young, we drove 44 miles to the nearest K Mart and Sears. It was a real treat not to have to go to a different store for clothes, toys, tools, and yard supplies.
We usually made the trip at least once a year before school started or before Christmas.
As a young married couple K Mart, Sears, Bradford, Sky City, and several other such stores discovered our dollar base and moved close by.
In the last 15 years, everyone but Sears is gone and now we have WalMart.
Although I long for the smaller stores because of walking issues, I can find almost everything needed under one roof, and if the electric cart doesn't die, do it without much walking.
I will say that Walmart ( 5 stores in 8 miles) has a price match program that gives me back the difference if they find a local better price on most of my receipt. They have free store pickup for most anything I order, or home delivery for a small fee.
The times, they are a changing !!!!!

[salpal48]

We have a Sears and a Kmart here In NJ. Sears never anyone Inside. K mart is holding It's Own. Whenever dollar store move In, It is a sign the Area is Down and out and a Influx of Broke people

[Soundguy]

I avoid also because they are cash only. Anymore today I do everything on plastic. To many benefits and few, non mitigatable downsides.

I have nothing personally against also, irrelevant of the owner...just a convenience issue for me.

[Thundarstick]

Good riddance!!! They can't shut them up fast enough to suit me! Read up on the hole (CEO) that's at the helm of that sinking stinking ship and you'll agree! He ruined plundered and pillaged an American icon! When Sears sold off craftman to B&D I knew they where done for!

[Tripplebeards]

The last Kmart on island is closing.
Kind of sad.
I liked to shop at Kmart more than Walmart.
I hope Sears can rebound.
Grew up with Sears.
Christmas catalog was the best.

Your going to run out of places to purchase stuff that doesn't cost an arm and leg! Lol

I went to Maui the last two years on vacation and saw the Sears there. Managed the auto center here in my town till i closed it last month. I checked on managing and being the district manager in HI and VS the cost of living it would be very hard to make the boat float.

I can't talk politics and don't want to slander but I'm pretty confident you will not see either around by the end of next year.


If you have a Sears auto center on your island and find out they're closing go in and talk to the manager as they will sell you all new, unused wheel weights for practically nothing.

I acquired all my lead and probably never need to look for any again in my lifetime.

P.s. I also learned quickly to release any sharks in your state.

[DerekP Houston]

I avoid also because they are cash only. Anymore today I do everything on plastic. To many benefits and few, non mitigatable downsides.

I have nothing personally against also, irrelevant of the owner...just a convenience issue for me.

From the website:

Q. What forms of payment are accepted at ALDI stores?
A. We welcome cash, Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express, most debit cards, the Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) and Link cards. At this time, we do not accept checks or the Women, Infants and Children program (WIC).

I use my debit card all the time there.

[Soundguy]

That's interesting ..the store by my WalMart must not be privy to that info. They take cash or check, only.

[shaner]

From the website:

Q. What forms of payment are accepted at ALDI stores?
A. We welcome cash, Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express, most debit cards, the Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) and Link cards. At this time, we do not accept checks or the Women, Infants and Children program (WIC).

I use my debit card all the time there.Our aldi takes all forms of payment.
Have to ask why do you call aldi a EU store?
I don't catch on too abreviations everyone uses anymore. [emoji20]

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[MaryB]

Sears might hang on if they drop back to their core appliance/lawnmowers/snowblowers etc items. I know the local Sears never carried much besides those and lots of tools.

[Ickisrulz]

Sears might hang on if they drop back to their core appliance/lawnmowers/snowblowers etc items. I know the local Sears never carried much besides those and lots of tools.

Our Sears closed a few years ago but left behind a "Sears Hometown." The Sears Hometown only sells appliances, yard equipment and tools. It is empty most of the time. Lowes is getting the customers these days with their better selection and lower prices. Plus, Lowes offers a military discount.

[Plate plinker]

Our aldi takes all forms of payment.
Have to ask why do you call aldi a EU store?
I don't catch on too abreviations everyone uses anymore. [emoji20]

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I believe that Aldi is a German run outfit.

[shaner]

I believe that Aldi is a German run outfit.Oh I knew that it was? Its a interesting story about the owner too

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[woodbutcher]

:( The local Sears here is closing too.KMart has been gone for way over 10 years.Dollar General I use as little as possible.Why?The isles are so crapped up with empty boxes,still packed merchandise and just plain junk,that it is not safe for people that have to use a cane to get around,and if a person needs to use a walker,wellllllllll just forget even going to that brand store.The help are nice and the prices are good,but other than that DG sucks.
Good luck.Have fun.Be safe.
Leo

[mold maker]

There are several DGs in the area. The older one is like you describe. The others are neat are handicap accessible. The condition of the asiles is directly related to the manager and the ammount of help availsble. Many stores have only 2 workers to run the register and manage stock. The check out person can't leave the register and when a truck delivers there is very little room in back for stock. Thus until it all gets shelved, the asiles are all that's available.

[salpal48]

All these Dollar Stores Are 95% junk.. The only Thing they Do. is drag the other Local Business down. . They are a Blite On most Neighborhoods
The downtowns Turn into dump

[dragon813gt]

All these Dollar Stores Are 95% junk.. The only Thing they Do. is drag the other Local Business down. . They are a Blite On most Neighborhoods
The downtowns Turn into dump

Dollar General is not a dollar store. They are a very small version of Walmart. They haven't drug down any areas around here. They are opening everywhere because it's a good business model. There is one a block away from my house. It's always busy and it's convenient if you need a few items. There used to be a grocery store there and it flat out failed, multiple times.

[mold maker]

Dollar general doesn't sell Buicks or John Deer equip, but they do have bread milk and paper goods at reasonable prices without having to walk half a mile.
If all you need is a .50 get well card, why would ya do the WalMart thing?

[Soundguy]

Around here we had dg, but also family dollar. They have a better selection. They care the same mouth was I use for a dollar that WalMart has for 3$

[Detroitdanm]

I use to shop in Sears weekly and spent a good deal of money on Craftsman tools and other quality goods over the years. That mostly came to an end as their merchandise was offshored and mostly all turned into china ****. I did spend a few bucks there last Christmas on some gear wrench's they had killer pricing on. K Mart I gave up on years ago. I do some shopping at Walmart, mostly groceries but hate going as it usually take forever to check out. Dollar General has become a reliable go-to for a lot of household goods I use to get at Walmart. I plan on checking out Aldi's because their food prices get such excellent reviews.

[FergusonTO35]

I worked for Sears from 1997-1999 and I don't think I've ever seen a company try as hard as they did to flush 100+ years of success and customer goodwill down the toilet. It's as if the decision makers said "We did it!! Our customers and employees now hate us!! Spray the champagne!!"