K-Mart

[AmesNewington]

Liquidation has already began at the Kmart in Vernon, CT. I went today thinking the sale wouldn't begin until next week, but to my shock, the Store Closing sign along with people holding signs at the offramp to the Hartford Turnpike was displayed. The media got it wrong as they said the sales would start in two weeks from the announcement, but it was just one week. The store was super busy. 9 registers and 8 cashiers ringing. This was just the beginning of the sale with low % discounts, but people were buying full carts of everything imaginable. This location didn't have that great of an inventory to begin with, so I got what I could while I was able to, because stock will dwindle quickly I imagine. They are scheduled to close in March, but I'm not sure I'll be back. I hate to say that it would be best for Sears to just go now. At checkout, the register I went to had a card machine that had a broken signature pen, a broken key to look up points, and the system was super slow, as was the card machine. They won't bother to fix anything at their remaining locations even if they stay in business. Very sad what Eddie Lampert did to these two names. He doesn't deserve to keep his company alive. 

what went wrong w this store? as its the only store like that in Vernon. and them keeping a smaller and older one in Watertown in Ct. Again its like CT was never a Kmart state.

Where will Kmart be by June ya think?

They keep weeding out stores little by little. Of course, they did away with all of their bigger locations in CT. It probably doesn't cost much to run Watertown. Vernon probably did well, but not good enough at this point to keep it going. I have to say, they made it quite a long time. They would be celebrating their 45th year in 2020, but they barely made it to 44. I really don't believe Sears will last much longer anyway, so if they close now or later, it won't be much of a difference.

[jaredski09]

Here’s a small article by Patch.com on the Kmart Store Closing Liquidation sale in Vernon, CT with a few pictures: https://patch.com/connecticut/vernon/store-closing-sale-full-swing-vernon-kmart

I also noticed today that some work has started at the former Kmart South Burlington, Vermont that closed in January 2016. A few bulldozers are starting to dig up parts of the parking lot right in front of the former Kmart building. A new flagship 60,000 square foot Hannaford Supermarket will move into the former Kmart along with 2 other yet-to-be named tenants next to it. Hannaford currently has a 40,000 square foot store directly behind the former Kmart and owns the Kmart Plaza property.

[AmesNewington]

I visited the Kmart in Watertown, CT on January 11, 2019. I challenged myself to take the drive up there without going on the highways. It took me nearly an hour and a half to get there. From Newington, I started by going to Bristol and taking Route 6 up to Watertown. This area had a very small-town feel with numerous village areas and stores you rarely see in the cities in CT (several Rite Aids and Adam's IGA supermarkets on this stretch). The store itself is quite dated, but the youngest of the remaining Kmarts that closed in the last decade. It is also the smallest of the CT Kmarts and the last one to remain in the state. They have 7 registers with 2 open when I went. They packed the store in with merchandise and its quite neat and organized. Several employees were on the floor straightening shelves out, which I rarely ever saw at the Cromwell and Vernon stores. The floors are worn, and the overall vibe of the store is distressed. I can only attest to my one visit, but after seeing so many complaints on this location, it's no worse than the others. You have to go here with an open mind and not expect much and you will be satisfied. The Kmart chain still has unique merchandise and items you can't find at other stores. It's worth it for an occasional visit for various holiday supplies and seasonal needs. Even their small grocery section was well stocked. I feel this store serves as more of a convenience store for the locals. I'm happy this location is staying open. I would miss not having a Kmart option. If Sears can make it, I'd love to see a few small Kmart stores open in the state, as I believe Kmart was still popular as opposed to Sears. The size of Watertown (maybe a bit larger) would work for new stores. I think the average Kmart was too big for the financial situation the company was in. They had too much merchandise that didn't sell. I actually think they should have shrunk the size of their stores a long time ago.

[rsammataro1126]

Hey y'all,

So I went through an old list I found of all the locations Kmart shuddered in the 2003 Bankruptcy wave of closures and plotted them all out on a map! They're even sorted out by Big K's and Super K's! Hope to do more in the future if y'all enjoy it!

https://tinyurl.com/2003KmartMap

[BillyGr]

Hey y'all,

So I went through an old list I found of all the locations Kmart shuddered in the 2003 Bankruptcy wave of closures and plotted them all out on a map! They're even sorted out by Big K's and Super K's! Hope to do more in the future if y'all enjoy it!

https://tinyurl.com/2003KmartMap

Just FYI - clicking the link says access denied and need to ask for permission - perhaps that is something set up on your end that should be switched so people can see it more easily?

[rsammataro1126]

Yup you're absolutely right I forgot to add sharing permissions to the map so here's an updated link that y'all should be able to access

http://tinyurl.com/Kmart2003

Let me know if there's any more problems!

Hey y'all,

So I went through an old list I found of all the locations Kmart shuddered in the 2003 Bankruptcy wave of closures and plotted them all out on a map! They're even sorted out by Big K's and Super K's! Hope to do more in the future if y'all enjoy it!

https://tinyurl.com/2003KmartMap

Just FYI - clicking the link says access denied and need to ask for permission - perhaps that is something set up on your end that should be switched so people can see it more easily?

[BillyGr]

Yup you're absolutely right I forgot to add sharing permissions to the map so here's an updated link that y'all should be able to access

http://tinyurl.com/Kmart2003

Let me know if there's any more problems!

Hey y'all,

So I went through an old list I found of all the locations Kmart shuddered in the 2003 Bankruptcy wave of closures and plotted them all out on a map! They're even sorted out by Big K's and Super K's! Hope to do more in the future if y'all enjoy it!

https://tinyurl.com/2003KmartMap

Just FYI - clicking the link says access denied and need to ask for permission - perhaps that is something set up on your end that should be switched so people can see it more easily?

Looks good now - Thanks!

[Kmart4life]

Here is the Brandon Florida store which closed about 6 months ago and has already been demolished.

[Kmart4life]

Got these on ebay and will soo get the Ames in red too!

[Everything Community]

Here is the Vernon, CT Kmart that was taken just over three months ago when it was still open (just less than two months before the store closed!). It was opened on February 27, 1975, renovated sometime in the early/mid-1990's, converted to "BIG" Kmart in the late 90's, building exterior remodeled in the late 2000's, finally closed after 44 years on March 3rd. This leaves Watertown to be the remaining store in Connecticut.

[AmesNewington]

Here is the Vernon, CT Kmart that was taken just over three months ago when it was still open (just less than two months before the store closed!). It was opened on February 27, 1975, renovated sometime in the early/mid-1990's, converted to "BIG" Kmart in the late 90's, building exterior remodeled in the late 2000's, finally closed after 44 years on March 3rd. This leaves Watertown to be the remaining store in Connecticut.

I shopped the Vernon store beginning in April 2017 after Cromwell closed. It was still a good store at that time, but started to slip along with the rest of the chain when they started the Blow-Out sales and I started seeing less stock in store, and a less tidy store. They started improving around Christmas 2018 when the bankruptcy began. I really thought this one would survive closure, and it looked like they would. Still can't believe they closed. Since I like Kmart and have the Shop Your Way card, I checked out the Watertown store. It is dubbed as "The Little Store That Could". It's out in the middle of nowhere near Waterbury and Naugatuck and is very small and rundown inside. They still have a great deal of merchandise inside and you can stock up on items every so often, especially for holidays where they excel. Many people complain about that location, but I went in with an open mind and really wasn't too disappointed. The interior could use a bit of a renovation as the floors are really falling apart. I have no idea what keeps Watertown open as the last Kmart in the state, but I wish them well and hope they can make it as long as the company makes it.

[Everything Community]

*Formerly Grant's / Kmart*

Ocean State Job Lot - Windsor, Connecticut

Originally built as Grant's in 1968, converted to Kmart after bankruptcy in 1976, became the current OSJL shortly after Kmart moved out of its current location in 1995 to the bigger store in town (closed in 2003, now Target).

Any resemblance to the older layout from Grants or Kmart? If so, tell us what you think!

[TheFugitive]

Giant Eagle and Advance Auto stores in the Crafton-Ingram Shopping Center near Pittsburgh.
Was originally a Grant's location which likewise became a Kmart after the Grant's bankruptcy.
Kmart moved to a new Super Kmart location near the Pittsburgh Airport in 1994 and Giant Eagle
took over the building.

[Everything Community]

Here's an older Kmart price tag featuring a logo from 1990 that is shown in the back cover of a sports book. Accordingly, it shows the date (it really says June 1991) that has had proof to be told.

[scottw73]

Here is a former Kmart location that has been repurposed into a trampoline park, it's located at 240 Bull Hill Lane in Orange CT. This space has been vacant for many years, it was Kmart then a Builders square, if anyone knows the history of this location please let us know.  Here's what it looks like now.

https://images3.loopnet.com/i2/jQsZuLWNiLyTYipbxFhr_A4bH2VPYw4NaqaoiCBCfFE/110/image.jpg

[AmesNewington]

*Formerly Grant's / Kmart*

Ocean State Job Lot - Windsor, Connecticut

Originally built as Grant's in 1968, converted to Kmart after bankruptcy in 1976, became the current OSJL shortly after Kmart moved out of its current location in 1995 to the bigger store in town (closed in 2003, now Target).

Any resemblance to the older layout from Grants or Kmart? If so, tell us what you think!

It looks like they are still using the old Ames green checkout counters. Ocean State was big on reusing equipment and fixtures from the old chains that had recently closed around the time OSJL was beginning to boom with new stores opening left and right in the early 2000s. They were known to have repurpose the fleets of Ames carts and checkout stands. They would usually just place a sticker with their name over the Ames logo and install new OSJL cart handles on the carts. They even used carts from other chains like Bradlees, Caldor and even Waldbaums in random locations. Wherever they could get them I assume. It was a treat to push an old cart from stores of the past. Recently, they reuse old carts from Walmart and Kmart (mostly Walmart when they retired the old blue carts with the newer models). With OSJL continuing to prosper and expand, they have been better at getting their own fixtures and equipment. But they like to open almost as is at certain closed retailers with little to no renovations. Sometimes they don't have a choice but to gut the building but mostly you can walk in to the store and see a lot of the former store intact.

[danfifepsu]

*Formerly Grant's / Kmart*

Ocean State Job Lot - Windsor, Connecticut

Originally built as Grant's in 1968, converted to Kmart after bankruptcy in 1976, became the current OSJL shortly after Kmart moved out of its current location in 1995 to the bigger store in town (closed in 2003, now Target).

Any resemblance to the older layout from Grants or Kmart? If so, tell us what you think!

It looks like they are still using the old Ames green checkout counters. Ocean State was big on reusing equipment and fixtures from the old chains that had recently closed around the time OSJL was beginning to boom with new stores opening left and right in the early 2000s. They were known to have repurpose the fleets of Ames carts and checkout stands. They would usually just place a sticker with their name over the Ames logo and install new OSJL cart handles on the carts. They even used carts from other chains like Bradlees, Caldor and even Waldbaums in random locations. Wherever they could get them I assume. It was a treat to push an old cart from stores of the past. Recently, they reuse old carts from Walmart and Kmart (mostly Walmart when they retired the old blue carts with the newer models). With OSJL continuing to prosper and expand, they have been better at getting their own fixtures and equipment. But they like to open almost as is at certain closed retailers with little to no renovations. Sometimes they don't have a choice but to gut the building but mostly you can walk in to the store and see a lot of the former store intact.

Looks like Kmart due to the orange walls many unremodeled stores before the Big Kmart era.

[BillyGr]

It looks like they are still using the old Ames green checkout counters. Ocean State was big on reusing equipment and fixtures from the old chains that had recently closed around the time OSJL was beginning to boom with new stores opening left and right in the early 2000s. They were known to have repurpose the fleets of Ames carts and checkout stands. They would usually just place a sticker with their name over the Ames logo and install new OSJL cart handles on the carts. They even used carts from other chains like Bradlees, Caldor and even Waldbaums in random locations. Wherever they could get them I assume. It was a treat to push an old cart from stores of the past. Recently, they reuse old carts from Walmart and Kmart (mostly Walmart when they retired the old blue carts with the newer models). With OSJL continuing to prosper and expand, they have been better at getting their own fixtures and equipment. But they like to open almost as is at certain closed retailers with little to no renovations. Sometimes they don't have a choice but to gut the building but mostly you can walk in to the store and see a lot of the former store intact.

Actually that makes sense with the type of chain they are.  Since they are selling closeout items from other stores (at least many of their items are - even things like having lawn waste bags with other store names printed on them, sometimes obviously badly printed being why they got them cheap), why not use the same type of items in your store? (they've had bags at the checkout from other stores as well, again either misprints or chains that closed up).

As noted on the cart page, ours has some Grand Union carts (as that is what it was before OSJL) and about all they did was add a couple walls to make more storage areas (which hid some of the GU décor but just hid it, it wasn't removed).

[danfifepsu]

How much longer will Kmart be around? esp with how they have been whittled down and to where they are now a regional chain than a national now.

[AmesNewington]

How much longer will Kmart be around? esp with how they have been whittled down and to where they are now a regional chain than a national now.

Please stop asking these questions over and over. No one has the answer to this. It's time to let the new Kmart and Sears pave their own way and if they can't and they fail, it will end (I really am hoping they can survive as I am tired of chains going out and we are left with huge monopoly stores like Walmart and Amazon). However clogging the boards with these questions isn't necessary. 

[Retail Regents]

Here's the still-empty Herkimer, NY location.

[TheFugitive]

The former Kmart store in Bridgeville, PA is being used (temporarily) by Big Lots.

Big Lots is remodeling all of their stores in the Pittsburgh area.  Both the one up the
street in Bridgeville and the one in the former Hills location at Century III are currently
torn apart.  A manager at the Bridgeville Big Lots told me that they are changing out
all of the old fixturing for new.  The former Kmart is being used as a staging area
for new fixtures coming for their local stores, and storage for the old fixtures being
removed until a liquidator comes and picks them up.  Once the remodel is finished
they will vacate the former Kmart.

Ironically enough the remodeled sections of these Big Lots stores
bear an eerie resemblance to a Kmart.

[Retail Regents]

Here's the Mattydale, NY location. Exit door is still broken and the restrooms still have the original toilets.

[Everything Community]

This is a pylon sign of the former Kmart in Manchester, CT that still sits all the way in the front of the current OSJL plaza. Photos taken on both sides of the pylon!

With the paint being chipped off, you can almost reveal the "BIG" Kmart logo that was on the pylon. Originally painted over it by the "For Sale" sign, then repainted as if the building was being demolished. This happened to be at a former, long-gone Kmart on Spencer Street in Manchester, CT. It opened on 11/30/1972, closed in spring 2003, vacant for 9 years before being demolished. This pylon sign remains this way of doing as if nothing has changed since.

[Everything Community]

It's been over 3 months since the Kmart in Vernon, CT was closed and all of the signs are still there!

[AmesNewington]

It's been over 3 months since the Kmart in Vernon, CT was closed and all of the signs are still there!

Quite strange. I am up in the Buckland Hills area once a week, and I have wanted to head down there to see if the signs were still up, but hate the traffic on that stretch of road. Thank you for capturing this. I stopped there late March three weeks after they closed and I could understand the signs still being up then, but by now it's crazy how everything was left as is. The Meriden CT Sears still has its signs up (except the Auto Center building signage), but the mall entrances inside have been walled off (they left the signs up in back of the walls) and on premise mall signage blacked out Sears on directories. As for Vernon, I'm sure many people stopped by expecting to shop only to see an empty lot and locked doors. I still can't get over how that one closed. It was a go-forward store (one of the original 500). Wondering what's going on with the property. I'm surprised it hasn't been leased yet. It's a busy area. I'm thinking there is no sense of urgency to remove anything as these locations may be tied up with legal issues from the bankruptcy. Removing the signs is the least of their worries.

[JimSawhill]

The old KMart on Florida Avenue at Waters (KMart Plaza) is being renovated for an AutoZone and other stores. It is renamed The Top of the Heights Plaza. The Plaza has a Chinese restaurant, a church, Dollar General, Sears Outlet and the old KMart on the east side of the plaza and on the south side is a Laundromat, Audiomax (Car Stereo store) and a Pharmacy. Outparel is Wawa and KFC.

[JimSawhill]

Here is the Brandon Florida store which closed about 6 months ago and has already been demolished.

That was demolished for a Lucky's Market, and a Bealls. The Chuck E. Cheese was a Big Star Supermarket...

[Everything Community]

Yikes, we're so lucky we ventured out to Kmart in Holyoke, MA. How amazing this one-of-the-kind Kmart can survive after the bankruptcy in while Walmart & Target are both prime in millenium competition. When Kmart took over the former W.T. Grant store in 1976, it changed the retail world of Holyoke. It was a huge hit for the city to have a real department store like this.
This store has seen many changes over the years (just like all Kmarts!), having to deal with so much needed improvements including exterior repaints, "BIG" upgrade, yet most of the interior still hangs on the unchange from the Big Kmart era + the space where you can see the remains of the restaurant (that might've been occupied by Grant's or something) where the Kmart restrooms are that hearken back to the 1970's. 
This store is ridiculously lucky to have escaped every round of store closings since they filed their first bankruptcy as their holdings corporation (especially the 2003 round of store closings that almost made it on the official list, according to this web link that can shown on the bottom of this post). Pics of the interior will come eventually, so stay tuned!

Link: This Kmart almost closed that year!
http://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/showthread.php?t=56199

[giantsfan2016]

Yikes, we're so lucky we ventured out to Kmart in Holyoke, MA. How amazing this one-of-the-kind Kmart can survive after the bankruptcy in while Walmart & Target are both prime in millenium competition. When Kmart took over the former W.T. Grant store in 1976, it changed the retail world of Holyoke. It was a huge hit for the city to have a real department store like this.
This store has seen many changes over the years (just like all Kmarts!), having to deal with so much needed improvements including exterior repaints, "BIG" upgrade, yet most of the interior still hangs on the unchange from the Big Kmart era + the space where you can see the remains of the restaurant (that might've been occupied by Grant's or something) where the Kmart restrooms are that hearken back to the 1970's. 
This store is ridiculously lucky to have escaped every round of store closings since they filed their first bankruptcy as their holdings corporation (especially the 2003 round of store closings that almost made it on the official list, according to this web link that can shown on the bottom of this post). Pics of the interior will come eventually, so stay tuned!

Link: This Kmart almost closed that year!
http://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/showthread.php?t=56199

I remember my family went to the Holyoke KMART once. I don't remember what year. Maybe in the 90s when we went the Outlet Mall in Worcester? I would've been a kid of about 11 or 12. My impression of the store was that it was in a sketchy area and the city of Holyoke as a whole was a sketchy.