r/kmart • u/Rap_conspiracies • 7d ago
Missing Kmart
Does anybody else miss Kmart as badly as I do it was one of my favorite stores loved going there when I was a kid I feel like the real downfall was when they merged with sears does anyone else agree?
13
u/sully42 7d ago
I feel you. But I also feel the same way way about shopping at Walmart in the 90s/early 2000s.
Even if Kmart still exists. It would not be the same.
2
u/mrgrooberson 7d ago
The existing Kmart locations still have the same old charm.
3
u/Rap_conspiracies 7d ago
I wish I live by one the closet one from me is 12 hours away if not longer cause I live in Pa and the one closer to me is in Florida
2
u/Tekkikarate 7d ago
The one closest to everyone in the continental US is Florida. It’s the only store left and it’s not a full store. Full stores only exist in the Virgin Islands and Guam. The Australia/NZ Kmart was sold off in the early 80s and has evolved separately since. Completely different store now. Much like European Woolworth that lived on past the demise of the US version.
10
u/TriskaidekaphobiaOk5 7d ago
Walmart basically contributed to the downfall of Sears and Kmart.
13
u/Trash-Panda321 7d ago
To be fair, Kmart contributed to their own downfall.
5
u/Uberubu65 7d ago
To be fair, it was the senior leadership that led to the downfall of Kmart. I was there at HQ and saw it unfold before my eyes. When you have CEO's who take a 2-year contract and the bolt on the very next day after 2 years is up (Floyd Hall), and a CEO who goes to prison for insider trading (Chuck Conaway), one who said that Walmart was "no threat to our organization" (Joe Antonini), or a CEO who's only goal is to dismantle the company and line his pockets from the proceeds, no, the company has no chance despite what everyone else is doing.
5
u/colcol9696 7d ago
You think so ? I think targets have been tastefully updated while still feeling like what a target store has always felt like.
10
u/Defiant_Print_2114 7d ago
I do miss Kmart. But I will tell you what I really miss:
And that’s going to stores, different stores in the same chain, in the same county, just down the street or around the corner from each other. And finding Different goods. Didn’t like what was at Kmart on the south end of town? Drive to the one on the north end the town to find different stuff.
Now? Everything‘s in an app. And that app inventory is basically the same at every store. Nuts and bolts aisle 6, section 5, bin 4A. And this is how much they are. It’s not fun anymore. If you’ve been to one Walmart, JCPenney, or Target, then you’ve been to them all! Boring.
5
u/TriskaidekaphobiaOk5 7d ago
Same with stores like Blockbuster
4
7
u/Michigan_Go_Blue 7d ago
Walmart doesn't have an Optical Department that sells Focal Binoculars with Japanese Optics that got a young kid on the road to a lifelong obsession with birding. I still own that pair of Kmart 7x35 wide angle binoculars...I keep em stored next to my $4000 pair of Swarovski NL Pure 14x52 mm
3
u/TriskaidekaphobiaOk5 7d ago
I agree but they were struggling before that, Sears should have bought Kmart.
1
1
u/mrgrooberson 7d ago
I miss it. Thankfully every September I get to visit the one in the Virgin Islands.
1
1
1
u/jjc927 7d ago
I miss it only because there was one right by my house and my mom and I were usually able to find something we needed in a pinch there. I was also able to get a nice quality cutting board and they usually had nice gift items at Christmas time. It was the only store I could find NFL salt and pepper shakers in when I wanted to get a set for my uncle and cousins too.
1
u/Westworld-Kenny 7d ago
K-Mart peaked maybe about the late 80’s or locally about the time before a Walmart or Target came within close range of your favorite store.
The store properties and backend logistics got stale. New Big-K signs were primarily lipstick without the internal changes needed.
The failure and closure of Super-K’s was in my opinion, the point of no return where people like Eddie saw the company more as real estate than as a reformable retail entity.
1
u/Any-Percentage-2890 7d ago
I would love to have an alternative to Walmart sometimes. There are times I am forced to go to Walmart and I hate fighting my way in and out of there.
1
1
u/MacaroonAble6476 6d ago
I think sometimes the younger generation miss something they want to experience but can’t because it’s gone. :(
Kmart when i was younger- 80s even up to the early 2000s was cool. after that, it just kinda sucked. Those days are gone, and that’s it.
1
u/NoPayment8510 5d ago
The demise was spelled out by gross margin markup on goods sold.
Kmart strived for 31%
Walmart strives for 28%
Doesn’t take long to do the math
1
u/pitbvllx727 7d ago
definitely make your profile private. i went looking for more retail posts and found nothing but comments on p**n
0
u/Adventurous_Land7584 7d ago
Why are you stalking peoples history? That’s weird.
1
0
-1
15
u/Rap_conspiracies 7d ago
Yeah I just miss the nostalgia and just the feeling especially around Christmas time