Kmart winding down

[washman]

http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/comp...hut-down/ar-BBuIFAn?li=BBnbfcL&ocid=thanksDHP

Article says it all as do the interviews from the employees.

Let's see, 941 stores. When I worked there, we had about 2,600. I'd say 12-14 months before all the merchandise is liquidated. Already at Ollies, a dumping ground of sorts, there is more and more Sears and KM "closeout" merchandise than I've ever seen.

12-14 months might be optimistic if Eddie cannot find some suckers to advance funds to wind down operations.

Not sure about Sears though, best option would be to pawn off the Kennmore and Craftsman brand names to some other investment firm and have 3rd party supplies make the goods.

I've said it many times in the past and I'll say it again. Want to piss your company down the toilet? Put a beancounter in charge. Kmart will be the latest casualty of such corporate stupidity.

 

[delaneymeegan]

 

This is the employees opinions.

 

I was surprised to hear that there was stock..... in back.   How do you make money on stock not available for sale?  Any retailer is in business to Sell stuff, not store it..... or for that matter, to pay ridiculous rental and maintenance fees for those awful malls.

 

Sears is denying the rumors of shut-down.  It's true, they could be saying that to stave off a panic response.  Time will tell.

 

 

 

[man114]

Sears negotiated clever leases back in the day or found ways to own that real estate. It's basically ship the merchandise in put in 3 associates for the store and turn the list on for some of these stores and you've got 100k+ square feet of selling space.

They don't seem to be having issues getting merchandise into the stores which is the red flag that vendors are backing off or they're short of funds. I go there and there are carts and carts of big ticket stuff, toolsets, grills, lawnmowers, mattresses.

I think Eddie sinks the stock price low enough than takes it private.

 

[tolivac]

Are the buzzards through circling K-Mart and Saers and going to pick the remains?I would be leary if the store has you move warehouse stock to the sales floor and not replenish what you put out.Guess they will go anytime now.Guess will wait to when the "Going Out of Business" signs are hung!

 

[vacerator]

No more

"blue light specials"??
In 1979, I furnished my entire first apartment with items from K-Mart.
A 19 inch Admiral color TV for under $200--floor model. Lasted years.
A Douglas dinette set, got handed down eventually.
Wear Ever cookware with Silverstone, made in the USA, had that for several years also.
Corelle dishes with the little green floral trim. Still have a few pieces.
A Flexsteel sofa, and inexpensive end tables with fake wood plastic fronts. Had them for years afterward in my basement.
Another of my frequent shopping stores as a young bachelor was E.J Korvette.
Luckily I became an upwardly mobile adult and able to afford to save for nicer things, but K Mart gave me a good start.

 

[joeypete]

I just went to KMart a couple months ago and the store was very outdated. Employees were friendly, though several were bickering with each other...but that happens at my job too! LOL. They had plenty of merchandise though. I grew up with KMart...and Bradlees...and Caldor...and Ames/Zayres. Long before Wally World and Target came into the northeast big time. I'd shop at my KMart more if it was closer to me though. I LOVED the Super K in upstate NY and in Tucson. They were very nice in their day. It's sad to see this happening.

 

[askolover]

We had Kmart, BigK, TG&Y, Grant's, and Woolco.  Nearby Huntsville, AL had a Bargain Town USA and Nashville had Hill's.  I remember when the first Walmart came to our area in Pulaski, TN, a small town with unfortunate historical significance.

 

[DADoES]

 
K-Mart here closed YEARS ago, long before Sears got involved.  One of the Rotary Club's community service projects was to help fund remodeling the building into a Civic Center (in 1988).  Only 15 stores in TX now per kmart.com.  None are anywhere near here.  Back in the day was at least 4 stores within an hr drive (including the one here).

 

[dermacie]

Kmart

In my suburban Pittsburgh neighborhood of Shaler Township there is an aging Kmart in the Shaler Plaza it opened in 1964 and was the 10th store in the beginning of an empire. It is still a busy store since the closed Wal-mart is many mile from it. I myself shop there very often as I have since I was a child. I know I will miss it when its gone.

 

[delaneymeegan]

 

 

Don't count on them going.  Remember, Sears/Kmart is still the 5th largest retailer in the U.S.

 

[vintagekenmore]

I remember when I was little, that Kmart actually sold GE washers and dryers for a long time. Then all if a sudden they were gone

 

[dermacie]

Sears

Until 1988 Sears was the number one retailer in the country. Wal-mart surpassed them and it was Wal-mart Sears and Kmart. That's kind of why it was logical for Kmart to buy them nearly a dozen years ago. All of retailers seem to be struggling in today's world with cheaper competition.

 

[DADoES]

 
K-Mart sold GE (or Hotpoint) and Whirlpool. And maybe Frigidaire? (before or after WCI, or both?).

 

[washman]

Well.......

"Don't count on them going. Remember, Sears/Kmart is still the 5th largest retailer in the U.S"

I once said that about General Motors when they had 60% of the passenger car market in the US alone, when they employed 750,000 people, made a full line of appliances, Detroit Diesel was a mainstay in the trucking world, when you started in a Chevy and they buried you in a Cadillac hearse.

If you told me 40 years ago, even 30 years ago, that 2 of the existing car lines, Olds and Pontiac would be gone, I'd would have said you're crazy.

Hard to fathom today, but once upon a time, Pontiac vied for 3rd place in the annual car sales after Ford and Chevy esp in the 60's.

If tyou told me Ford would give Mercury the boot, I'd say no way. If you told me the once perennial 3rd best seller, Plymouth, would be gone, I'd say you would have been nuts.

Fact is, there really isn't much left for Kmart/Sears in terms of market share. Walmart owns the down-and-dirty-cheap end, Target established itself more upscale, and Dollah General fills in the gaps along with Family Dollah.

There simply isn't enough gas in the "brand" tank for Kmart/Sears to revive. It's only a matter of time before they slip into oblivion.

 

[tomturbomatic]

I remember seeing WP products at a Kmart in the mid 70s.

What they are talking about is that "just in time stocking" with stock going directly onto the shelves. Auto and appliance companies use it for parts. It is a way to avoid having to pay taxes on inventory. All you have is what's on the shelves or in the case of parts, what you order in for a customer and sell today or tomorrow. I think the internet is radically changing the way American shops. Amazon is becoming a big player in the grocery delivery business, but it costs $299 to upgrade to Amazon Prime Fresh or whatever it's called; pretty clever getting your customers to capitalize your business expansion.

I wonder if it is "winding down" or circling the drain?

 

[gusherb]

I went to Kmart a month ago maybe. It was stocked and full of shoppers but the prices for commodity items were way higher than other stores. A 100oz bottle of original Tide was $15. I don't think the store has ever been remodeled since it opened in the early 90s either. It used to be a Venture before that which opened in 1975. The only thing they have done is remodel the bathrooms.

 

[tolivac]

The closed KMart in Greenville is SLOOOOWWWLLLY being turned into a Publix Market.Remember these when I was a kid living in Florida.Nice stores.The sign posted on the derelict KMart says "Publix 2017"!The little shopping center where the KMart was is looking like a desert-3 restuarants there have closed-the fabric store--gone-other stores-empty-signs in the windows-"This space for rent!"The state motor vehicle place occupys what used to be a state liquor store.The motor vehicle place had to move-the shopping plaza they were in got bulldozed-in its place---A Hobby Lobby!See how this does.

 

[delaneymeegan]

 

 

While it's true that Kmart, and GM, may have once been "Tops" in their field, it doesn't mean that when they are no longer tops that an entity/person/brand needs to slide to the opposite extreme.   I think, people assume that's what HAS to happen.  

 

There are still <span style="text-decoration: underline;">900 Kmart stores</span>.  That's a shit-load of stores that any retailer could be proud of.   

 

One thing is clear, there is no quick moves to sell off or close things down.   All we can do is speculate.  I won't be surprised either way.  I'm biased to rooting for Kmart and Kenmore.  Sears really doesn't do much for me, but.....

 

Retailing has changed considerably, and for the better, I think.  More efficient, less waste.  Walmart is next.  They aren't exactly sailing along any longer.

http://www.cheatsheet.com/money-career/no-one-cares-kmart-anymore.html/?a=viewall

 

[vacerator]

K Mart carried also

Zenith, RCA, Panasonic, Soundesign, Loyyd's, Hoover, Eureka, etc. I think even some Sony, and G.E.