And then there were 3 - [Kmarts]

[professorscott]

Kmart started losing focus no later than the 1980s with its purchase of outfits like Builder's Square and Waldenbooks, when it should have been concentrating on upgrading its stores and inventory system. Add to that the lie-filled tenure of Chuck Conaway and the current ongoing rape of the company by sociopath Eddie Lampert, and it's remarkable there are any stores left at all.

That, and the complete neglect of basic store upkeep. Lampert basically took it as a real estate play, and he himself has been doing OK with it, while destroying two iconic American brands. Sears and K-Mart [[there used to be a hyphen) were absolutely go-to places in the 1960s and 1970s, and it has been awful to watch the slow, painful and inexorable decline. My daughters and nieces have never been inside a Sears or a KMart and likely never will - I'm talking about women from their early 20s to mid 30s in age. Those brands are utterly irrelevant to them.

[mikefmich]

Are there any old-timers here that know what brand the 10 Mile/Dequindre or Waterford Kmart stores were when they originally opened? The architecture of neither conforms to the standard Kmart design.

I think it was Korvettes at 10 & Deq.? Memory is fuzzy, I could be wrong.

[jcole]

I think it was Korvettes at 10 & Deq.? Memory is fuzzy, I could be wrong.

I think the Warren started as a Kmart. Also there were 5 Korvette's and the closest to Warren was 12 Mile and John R, where that big Kmart closed. It's now going to be BJ's Warehouse.

[401don]

With the loss of KMart, Sears and the Target debacle, would love to see Meijer move in to Canada. We really need a bricks & mortar Walmart competitor. They probably fear the higher costs here but Walmart has done well. Of course you need a lot of stores in a short time period to justify the warehousing and distribution, something Target really screwed up on.

[jcole]

With the loss of KMart, Sears and the Target debacle, would love to see Meijer move in to Canada. We really need a bricks & mortar Walmart competitor. They probably fear the higher costs here but Walmart has done well. Of course you need a lot of stores in a short time period to justify the warehousing and distribution, something Target really screwed up on.

What about Canadian Tire? I thought they were pretty large

[401don]

What about Canadian Tire? I thought they were pretty large

They're good for hard goods but I like the convenience of shopping for cheap clothes & food along with the hard goods all in one spot.

[Lowell]

And then there were none. Kmart is no more in Metro Detroit. And in Michigan only the Marshall store remains.

"Kmart is closing its remaining stores in metro Detroit, where the retail chain started nearly 60 years ago.

"Stores in Waterford and Warren will be shuttered as another 96 Sears and Kmart locations have been targeted for closure, according to a Thursday announcement by Transform Holdco LLC, which formed in February to acquire the assets of Sears Holdings Corp.

"The Kmart store in Waterford and the Sears store in Lansing are set to close by February with liquidation sales starting in December. The Warren location will close in late December or early January, Transform Holdco spokesman Larry Costello said."

The closures will leave the company with 182 Sears and Kmart stores nationwide.

https://www.crainsdetroit.com/retail...s-its-hometown

[Johnnny5]

I'm not surprised that the Marshall store held out the longest. It's really the only large retailer in the area, and is always fairly busy when I go though there [[Busy for a Kmart).

I will add that Eddie Lambert still deserves prison [[And probably worse) for what he's done to Sears, Kmart and the employees and retirees of both. Scum of the Earth that man is...

[sirrealone]

I remember around 2002 a few of us did a group project for MBA school and did a case study on the decline of KMart. We closed with something along the lines of "For as many mistakes as KMart has made over the years, it seems that with some focus, things can only get better from here."

Oops.

[[Still got an 'A' though)

[jcole]

I can't figure out why the one in Marshall is one of the last two unless it's privately owned or a lot of people from Indiana drive up to it

[Johnnny5]

I can't figure out why the one in Marshall is one of the last two unless it's privately owned or a lot of people from Indiana drive up to it

There's not a similar store anywhere nearby. On has to drive into Battle Creek or South to Coldwater to find a Walmart or Meijer, so the Marshall K-Mart is the most convenient place for those in the surrounding area which also includes Albion.

[jcole]

There are both a Walmart and a Meijer 19 minutes from Marshall. And 1/2 hour away in Jackson also. And the two Meijer in Jackson are 20 minutes from Albion.

[Gistok]

Is Saint Clair Shores suitable enough for a Target store? That property is large enough to at least hold one of their "Flexible-Format" stores [[one of which recently opened in East Lansing).

That 9 Mile/Harper location was a bad idea for a Kroger. In SCS there are 3 Kroger stores within 1 1/2 miles of that location... one at Marter and Jefferson, one at 9 Mile and Greater Mack, and one at 8 Mile & Harper [[which is technically across the street from the SCS border).

That 9 Mile/Harper location would be an ideal site for a Target. There are only 3 Target stores in Macomb County... two on M-59, and one at 15 Mile and Gratiot [[Clinton Twp). So a SCS Target would be close for SCS, Eastpointe, all the Grosse Pointes, Harper Woods, and by default the entire east side of Detroit [[only 1/2 mile from I-94).

[Zacha341]

^^^ LOL on the Kroger situation. Nothing was as nutso as the two Kroger's across from each other in Dearborn on Michigan near Telly.

With another one at Michigan and Greenfield!

[Danny]

And then there were none. Kmart is no more in Metro Detroit. And in Michigan only the Marshall store remains.

"Kmart is closing its remaining stores in metro Detroit, where the retail chain started nearly 60 years ago.

"Stores in Waterford and Warren will be shuttered as another 96 Sears and Kmart locations have been targeted for closure, according to a Thursday announcement by Transform Holdco LLC, which formed in February to acquire the assets of Sears Holdings Corp.

"The Kmart store in Waterford and the Sears store in Lansing are set to close by February with liquidation sales starting in December. The Warren location will close in late December or early January, Transform Holdco spokesman Larry Costello said."

The closures will leave the company with 182 Sears and Kmart stores nationwide.

https://www.crainsdetroit.com/retail...s-its-hometown

Crying!!!

[mtburb]

^^^ LOL on the Kroger situation. Nothing was as nutso as the two Kroger's across from each other in Dearborn on Michigan near Telly.

One of these two is no longer in business.

[Zacha341]

Yep the older one on the north side of Michigan Ave closed.

[bartocktoo]

My issue with this is that Meijer stores are a total upgrade from K-Mart. And their headquarters closed in Troy what 15 years ago? I'll take a Meijer store any day above what KMART was. It's just progress. And the fact that Meijer opened stores in Detroit and South Warren means these places have been replaced. By a Michigan company albeit on the west side of the state.

[Burnsie]

One nice thing about Kmart was that it wasn't as huge and crowded as Meijer. But that was a sign it wasn't competing. In hindsight Kmart should have revamped the Kresge format into something that would have competed with the big dollar chains.

An interesting case study is the Meijer that opened in Okemos in 1969, and the Kmart that opened across the street in 1970. The Meijer aggressively expanded, while the Kmart [[which originally also sold groceries) stagnated until it closed only 25 years later.

[Hypestyles]

And then there were none. Kmart is no more in Metro Detroit. And in Michigan only the Marshall store remains.

"Kmart is closing its remaining stores in metro Detroit, where the retail chain started nearly 60 years ago.

"Stores in Waterford and Warren will be shuttered as another 96 Sears and Kmart locations have been targeted for closure, according to a Thursday announcement by Transform Holdco LLC, which formed in February to acquire the assets of Sears Holdings Corp.

"The Kmart store in Waterford and the Sears store in Lansing are set to close by February with liquidation sales starting in December. The Warren location will close in late December or early January, Transform Holdco spokesman Larry Costello said."

The closures will leave the company with 182 Sears and Kmart stores nationwide.

https://www.crainsdetroit.com/retail...s-its-hometown

I hope that there are some good holiday sales going on soon. When the weather clears, I might check them out.

[Hermod]

Let's see:
Kmart
Woolco
WT Grant
Arlan's
JM Fields
Caldor
Zayre
Ame's
Rose's

All tried to succeed in the same field as Walmart and only Walmart has survived.

[Onthe405]

With the loss of KMart, Sears and the Target debacle, would love to see Meijer move in to Canada. We really need a bricks & mortar Walmart competitor. They probably fear the higher costs here but Walmart has done well. Of course you need a lot of stores in a short time period to justify the warehousing and distribution, something Target really screwed up on.

While I'm no market analyst, it seems to me Meijer has yet to prove that it can successfully expand & compete outside of its relatively small, mostly exurb/rural Great Lakes footprint before even considering expanding into another nation.

As you point out, the logistics & distribution is one complex and crucial factor. Target & Kmart had vastly larger resources & experience in this area, yet still failed in Canada. Another important element is cultural: knowing when to tinker [[or not) with both the merchandise & pricing in order to appeal to the unique targeted regional consumer.

Correct if I'm wrong, but I understand the latter is another reason Target failed in Canada. Canadians expected the same shopping experience they had eagerly crossed the border for, but Target was unable to deliver comparable products & price to what they offered in the States. This "loss in translation" is a common misstep among companies looking to expand beyond their existing, comfortable geographic region.