What Really Happened to Kmart

What Really Happened to Kmart Attention Kmart shoppers. For decades, that voice and a flashing blue light meant a bargain somewhere in the store. This is the story of Kmart, from a Detroit five-and-dime in 1899 to the first full-size Kmart in Garden City, Michigan, in 1962, to about 2,500 stores at its peak. And it is the story of one Saturday in 1964, when a Kmart shopper found a stranger on his hands and knees in the clothing aisle, writing in a blue notebook. How Sebastian Kresge's ten-cent store on Woodward Avenue became Kmart Harry Cunningham's two-year, 100,000-mile study of discount stores The man in the blue notebook, and what he took home from Kmart's aisles Why Kmart fell: tired stores, a price fight, and Sears The last full-size mainland Kmart, Bridgehampton, New York, closed October 2024 The three Kmarts still standing: Miami, Guam and St. Thomas General information, not legal, housing or medical advice. For your own situation, talk to a licensed professional. Subscribe for more stories of the American places you remember, and tell me which store you miss in the comments. #Kmart #BlueLightSpecial #RetailHistory #Nostalgia #AmericanHistory #StillStandingUSA