Kmart's Time Is Running Out

Predicting the demise of Sears & Kmart since 2017!
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Alpha8472
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Kmart's Time Is Running Out

Post by Alpha8472 »

Kmart is purging the stock rooms of merchandise in their stores. Employees say that they believe the end of Kmart is near.

http://www.sfgate.com/technology/busine ... to-8703132
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Re: Kmart's Time Is Running Out

Post by storewanderer »

I was in the Sparks, NV Kmart today. It appears they have emptied out the stockroom as there are new displays of clearance items in one of the main walkways; primarily housewares and drug items.

The garden department had no live plants at all and very little hoses, dirt, etc. left.

I noticed one aisle next to the home/office department was filled with nothing but big plastic storage totes. I think that used to house books and art type items. I also noticed an entire grocery aisle was de-stocked and in its place is a bunch of paper products and storage totes. There was also a large section of aisles in what was the hardware department that was stocked full of paper towels. Also the shelves in the entire hardware/auto department now have hanging racks only going up 5 feet high, lots of empty peg board space in the back. The pet food and paper products aisles had a lot of out of stocks as did the drug area.

Another interesting thing I noticed was some of the newer ready to assemble furniture/chairs/stools coming in is no longer "Essential Home" brand but now just some shipper brand. Same supplier, just no longer using a Sears/Kmart exclusive brand for the items.

The clothing area seemed very well stocked. All of the lights were on. Loud music was playing and it wasn't great stuff. 80's rock maybe. The store had 3 cashiers open this afternoon. All small transactions.

The end has felt near for a long time. Maybe it is for real this time. Still a lot of stores and a lot of square footage to close all at once...
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Re: Kmart's Time Is Running Out

Post by Super S »

That Beaverton Kmart I mentioned recently screams that the store is knocking on death's door, especially with the signs having been removed.

A friend of mine told me that he visited the NE Portland Kmart last week and they also had rows of lights shut off and a very empty looking electronics section.

With that said, there is a nice Kmart to the north of here in Chehalis, WA. That one got a complete remodel (except for the strip lights and giant air vents in the ceiling) a few years back due to the store being flooded and is probably the nicest one around here. It is also the only one near me with the current signage. It is interesting how well they have kept it up considering that there is a big Walmart almost next door.

But with only a small number of good stores, the bad ones are bringing down the chain even more.
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Re: Kmart's Time Is Running Out

Post by Knight »

I hate to say Kmart's time ran out years ago. It made the mistake by not keeping up with Walmart's Walmart Supercenter stores with Super Kmart Center stores. It is sad and not a surprise to see Kmart fade away.
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Re: Kmart's Time Is Running Out

Post by wnetmacman »

Super S wrote:That Beaverton Kmart I mentioned recently screams that the store is knocking on death's door, especially with the signs having been removed.

A friend of mine told me that he visited the NE Portland Kmart last week and they also had rows of lights shut off and a very empty looking electronics section.

With that said, there is a nice Kmart to the north of here in Chehalis, WA. That one got a complete remodel (except for the strip lights and giant air vents in the ceiling) a few years back due to the store being flooded and is probably the nicest one around here. It is also the only one near me with the current signage. It is interesting how well they have kept it up considering that there is a big Walmart almost next door.

But with only a small number of good stores, the bad ones are bringing down the chain even more.
Kmart has been on shaky footing for 20 years. Their problem is that some stores are in excellent condition, and are well cared for. The remaining 900+ aren't. They aren't well stocked. They aren't well maintained. They aren't consistent; the company is still sporting not less than FOUR different logos throughout (original red+turquoise, 1990 Red, BigKmart and new Kmart logos). They have too many store models and cannot standardize. I could go on for months.

They simply cannot afford to right the ship. At this point, they would do better to let it sink and scrap what's left.
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Re: Kmart's Time Is Running Out

Post by mbz321 »

Knight wrote:I hate to say Kmart's time ran out years ago. It made the mistake by not keeping up with Walmart's Walmart Supercenter stores with Super Kmart Center stores. It is sad and not a surprise to see Kmart fade away.
Actually, I think it was a good idea to give up on the 'Super' concept. Even Walmart and Target are running into issues managing such huge stores, especially when the majority of shoppers are just buying low-margin grocery items. Target has seemed to have given up on expanding SuperTarget, and Walmart is facing tough competition from alternative, as well as traditional grocers which aren't really any more 'expensive' than Walmart. Kmart's mistakes come from years before that when they started opening so many side businesses and concepts in the 80's and early 90's (Sports Authority, Borders, OfficeMax, Pace Wholesale Clubs, Buliders Square, and probably some others I can't remember right now) while ignoring Kmart (after Sports Authority closes, the only remaining side business that was once part of Kmart that still exists will be whatever is left of OfficeMax).
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Re: Kmart's Time Is Running Out

Post by Knight »

Giving up on Super Kmart Center in order to lose out to Walmart Supercenter in the hypermarket segment was a sign of weakness. Focusing too much on a position of weakness has doomed Kmart. Walmart Supercenter, SuperTarget, Meijer, and Kroger's Marketplace stores among various banners have succeeded.
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Re: Kmart's Time Is Running Out

Post by pseudo3d »

The modern Kroger Marketplace is basically an adaptation of Fred Meyer, and generally, those stores seem to be a success, though I feel like they're still somewhat lacking in the GM department. I do wonder why there aren't at least strong regionals that offer a superior (or at least on par) grocery department with a superior GM departments. Super Kmart did both of those best in my opinion but those days are past. Walmart does GM okay for what it's worth but their grocery department is a disaster...some rather weak perimeters at best (the Walmart nearest me at least has a functioning deli with meats and cheeses sliced to order), out of stock items, and generally poor selection.
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Re: Kmart's Time Is Running Out

Post by ValuedCustomer »

I do wonder why there aren't at least strong regionals that offer a superior (or at least on par) grocery department with a superior GM departments
Meijer?
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Re: Kmart's Time Is Running Out

Post by wnetmacman »

pseudo3d wrote:I do wonder why there aren't at least strong regionals that offer a superior (or at least on par) grocery department with a superior GM departments.
Three words: Volume Buying Power. In the 70's and 80's, Kmart had it. If Kmart wanted something made a certain way, that's the way they got it. Sometimes, a different version would be made (at a higher price) for others, but mostly they had to sell the same item at a higher price. Walmart has it now. 4000+ stores in the US alone give them a major advantage over any regional retailer. Sometimes, it gives them an advantage over Target too.
pseudo3d wrote:Super Kmart did both of those best in my opinion but those days are past. Walmart does GM okay for what it's worth but their grocery department is a disaster...some rather weak perimeters at best (the Walmart nearest me at least has a functioning deli with meats and cheeses sliced to order), out of stock items, and generally poor selection.
By the time Super Kmart came around, Walmart was already flirting with Supercenters and Hypermart USA. Kmart was losing its footing as #1. Walmart was doing GM better. They started adding groceries at better prices, and it took off. Kmart never really unified their grocery and peripherals enough to say it was standardized. And their GM was starting to suffer when the first Super Kmart Centers came about. So I wouldn't say they ever had the best of anything. They were hit and miss.

Walmart has never professed to be the best at grocery. They just sell more than everyone else. If you want a good cake, you go to Kroger or Albertsons or the like. If you want a budget minded cake, you go to Walmart. If you want high quality party trays, you go to Kroger or Albertsons or the like. If you need a lot for a little, you go to Walmart. Even Sam said they weren't the best at everything, and wouldn't be. A good retailer knows how to do it better, not cheaper.

Thus, Kmart couldn't do it. They couldn't get a single distributor, and when they did, it was the weak link of distributors. Fleming was the wrong company at the worst time for either Kmart or themselves. Fleming is gone. Kmart is close.

To make a long story short; regional discounters don't exist, because to discount, you must buy in enough volume to bring the price down. Manufacturers these days want Walmart size orders to discount. Kmart doesn't have the size advantage it once did; Target barely does, but only wants 'cheap chic'.

Regionals can barely afford to get at list price. Fred Meyer and Meijer have really been the last men standing in what once was a large fraternity of discount merchandisers.
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