OAN Staff James Meyers
10:52 AM – Monday, September 23, 2024
The last full-size Kmart store in the United States is officially closing in New York.
The last remaining store, located in Bridgehampton, New York, will officially close its doors on October 20th, according to an employee who spoke to WJAR.
The real estate investment company, Kimco Realty Corp, which owns the shopping center that houses the last chain location, also confirmed the store would be closing, according to Newsday.
Newsday also stated that the last store has been open for 25 years.
However, Kmart has several stores outside the United States, which will remain open in the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam, WJAR reported.
The origin of the chain store dates all the way back to 1899, when Sebastian Spering Kresge founded his first store, a modest five-and-dime, in Detroit, according to Transformco.
Kresge quickly expanded his reach over the next decade under the name the S.S. Kresge Company and by 1912, he had 85 stores around the U.S.
The first official Kmart store opened in Garden City, Michigan, in 1962. During that same year, 17 more stores opened around the U.S.
By the 1990s, Kmart had 2,300 stores around the country, with 350,000 employees.
As business started to slow the Kmart Corporation filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2002 and merged with Sears Holdings in 2005.
Meanwhile, a smaller Kmart will remain open in Miami, Florida, but it’s small in comparison to the regular stores and is used as more of a garden department compared to the original stores.
Stay informed! Receive breaking news blasts directly to your inbox for free. Subscribe here. https://www.oann.com/alerts
