Shopping at One of the Last Open Kmart's Before it Closes Forever! Westwood NJ
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- Опубліковано 27 вер 2024
- There are three open Kmart's in the US and soon there will be only two. Join me for a shopping trip at the Westwood NJ location just a few weeks before it closes its doors forever!
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Guys Literally Only Want One Thing And It's Fcking Disgusting
Guys : 6:47
LMFAO!!!
you are very right i do want 647
r/boysarequirky
Stay yourself and don’t leave out the “u”
was originally gonna write the full word byt yeah youtube been really sensitive lately, thought that i'd play it safe
Worked 7 years for Kmart. You talking about "how long has this been on the shelf" is what killed Kmart. Other retailers clearance out or write off old stock once it is discontinued . Kmart, we would mark it down (usually not as low as it would have been on sale) let it sit on a shelf forever then eventually it would be too old to be in the system and we would throw it in the back. We had 1000s of dollars of old cameras locked in a cage in the back that were so old and never marked down low enough anyone would by. we were drowning in old stock that we couldnt sell
Amazing you guys never sold off that old stock to a bargain outlet like Ollie's, re-sale tactics like that keep places afloat on the serious, sometimes old products just clog up operations to such an extent it damages the ability to hold things people actually need.
Take new Star Wars toys, for example. Old stuff flew off the shelves, everyone wanted it. New stuff sits in the back. Worked at Walmart for years and never seen it move. I go to Ollie's and the place is FULL of it because they literally can't get rid of it any way other than selling it to Ollie's.
Same thing the business I work for now does. I'm just waiting for this place to close up shop because they refuse to markdown anything. We have iPhone 13's still marked at $800, used. Right across the street you get a FREE iPhone 15.
@@PhantraasI’ll give you $300 too get me one of those iPhone 15s
you dont need it that bad.... itll be everywhere in a year from now@@dariusowens1060
I remember as a kid I got so many 100+ dollar toys for 20 bucks for my birthday as a kid just cause they were a few years old. Made my birthdays special.
Zach Hadel still working at K Mart while making Smiling Friends shows how much of a respectable hard worker he is.
🤣
I knew that voice was familiar 😂
I was looking for this 😂 3:48
i heard that voice right when i read this lol
Ok so I wasn't alone. I was passively watching this when out of nowhere I hear Zach talk about Knart specials!
Most people in the 70s could afford a Kmart Christmas because they specialized at lay-away. The line for lay-away payments was long until that holiday. That's the way it should be now. Everyone wouldn't be in debt and would learn the value of money.
💯👏👏👏👏👏👏 I was a little kid in the 70s. My parents took extra jobs to build a house. We never gave lavish gifts, they were always things that a person needed, like clothes, though I did get a couple of toys. I remember my mom using layaway.
Agreed. I wish that they would bring layaway back!
Bringing lay away back would be great at all stores. It might even create more jobs.
Blue light special on everything
This lamb concurs.
Truly the end of an era. 😔 Kmart always reminds me of my aunt who absolutely loved Kmart. We used to walk there at least 3 times/week.
I literally grew up in K-mart.
My Mom worked in one for just over 13 years. Up until the board heads started putting their kids in charge. A bunch of inexperienced and entitled brats that pushed all of the long-time employees out, with false claims of theft and fake customer complaints.
My Mom was one of their best employees. Often working double shifts and taking on departs due to fools refusing to come to work. She eventually ended up working every department except management and the cafeteria.
The owner of the store was one of the nicest men you could ever meet. Basically a uncle to us kids. He allowed us to help Mom during her shifts because we were so well behaved and because she couldn't afford a babysitter. We got lots of free food from the cafeteria after they closed. It was give it to us or toss it into the trash.
Although they did Mom wrong at the end, I greatly miss K-mart. It was home away from home. Even got to work at one in a nearby city, as they were preparing to close it.
Sears really screwed up the franchise.
thats why you shouldn't go above and beyond... why cuz if u do great work above and beyond they won't give you a promotion they'll jus give u more work plus expect you to do that extra work in the future everytime
I only read your last sentence. You do realize K Mart bought Sears, not the other way around right?
The downfall in the last 20 years is solely because of fast eddie
Sucks reading that your mom worked there for 13 years but couldn't afford a babysitter 😭
@@polsdofer fr right 13yrs of work cant afford a baby sitter
Feels odd witnessing a store you went to frequently as a kid slowly dwindle away. I still remember getting dragged into Kmart with my Mom but was always promised pizza from the Little Caesars next door if I went (realistically I never had a choice to go or not). Kmart is also where I begged my Mom to buy me the VHS tape that had the guys with the cool laser glowsticks and spaceships on the cover, been a massive Star Wars fan since!
Ours was around the corner, but it was super taboo to go there alone when I was a kid to meet the other kids in the parking lot and such. And then, as a teen, I would be “embarrassed” to be seen at it! It became associated with being poor in my town. So totally strange looking back at this fact.
@@makeyourlifeaworkofart "Yo mama shops at K-mart" used to be a common insult in my school when I was a kid in the 90s.
It dont
This is so sad to see. As a kid, Kmart was one of my favorite stores and it has sucked to see it’s downfall over the past decade, or so. 😔
I remember when I was a young boy I went with my father to buy as case of motor oil at Kmart and came home with a Transformer Power Cycle
Their stupid corporate people are to blame as well as Eddy Lampert
@@brensdaman926 Oh yeah, I’ve heard. Seems like it’s always the people at the top that run these places into the ground, almost as if it was on purpose!
@@Tristin471 I was born in 92 and remember the 90's/early 2000's. The country was united, people were sane. There wasn't all this hatred. My sister and I could sit in the car and listen to the radio while my mom shopped in Kmart and nobody would bat an eye back then. The phones, internet, & anti-social media is when it all started changing 😥
More than an decade. Kmart has been doing bad since the early 2000’s.
I remember going to visit this Kmart in 2021 a few days after Christmas just to see a Kmart. At the time this was one of 6 Kmart's left in the USA, sad to see there is only going to be 2 left. I might have to go back for another visit before this one closes for good. It still baffles me how an iconic American Store like Kmart has fallen from over 2,000 stores to just 2 so quickly. Rest In Piece Kmart, we will remember you. 😔
When is it closing for good? Im so interested in checking it out too!!
@@laceyshanahan8655 pretty sure it’s gone now
I got to say for how well that store looked and the energy of the person on the speaker those employees truly loved their job. There will definitely be tears when they get their last paycheck.
What was most surprising to me was seeing so many of the signs there offering only a 15% or 20% discount off of their non-low prices. No wonder those items are still sitting on those lonely shelves...
Probably strategic drops, the high value stuff goes with 20% discounts, then 50% for the typical stuff and eventually you need to drop to 90% to move the remaining junk that's only worth a few bucks
Yeah all the closing Kmarts I went to were like that. Prices are higher for the same stuff you could get cheaper at Walmart or even Target. The markdowns kinda just bring it to the average price. You have to wait until it gets to at least 30% and up to actually get a deal.
@no98765 Yes, that is true. No wonder they closed.
When stores closed in our area they increase the percentage each week towards closing. So 20% off the first week then 50% off then 75% then 95% then the store closes. It maximizes revenue they can earn but gets rid of everything in the end.
I live 10 mins from that Kmart in the video. Live 2 mins from another Kmart that was one of the last to go. Huge sign on that one infront of the store “everything 70% off!” Go inside and the highest discount was 30%. Corporation being scum even when they’re going out. Maybe learn from your arrogance instead of kill the last remainder you have left? Also all the clothes were gone when I went except for s, 2xl and 3xl
I want to compliment the staff for keeping the store so nice while it's in its last act. I don't know if they knew that so many internet users would be seeing it but their effort made this video more pleasant. Always be kind to retail workers!
100%
I live by the last remaining Kmart in FL and it makes me sad to see it slowly disappearing. It was such an awesome store! I’ve bought so many cool stuff here! Video games, clothes, sports equipment, etc. This one used to have a small but very cool retro style food court. It looked like something you would have walked into back in the 80’s! Pizza, slushies, burgers, cotton candy, etc.
I wonder why Kmart is so popular in Australia but declined so here.
@@smfarrie2943that's crazy
@@smfarrie2943
That’s an easy question to answer. All of Kmart’s international operations had already been sold off before Eddie Lampert got involved with the company. He is the sole reason why Kmart/Sears failed here, but at least he has profited from the failure.
@@charlesbolton8471 oh wow. Thanks for that explanation. I think it's pretty sad when one person brings down the quality of a business. Kmart back in the day was always poppin'. And it seems like it changed overnight for both Sears and Kmart.
I’m in Florida too. But the one there is in Miami and I’m in Palm Coast, so I doubt I’ll ever see it. Lol
Last time I was in a Kmart was last week of December 2017 in the San Diego area. We were on a Christmas vacation from the Midwest. My grandma spotted it and wanted to go. One of my last memories is standing in the clothing section, looking out the front windows and seeing palm trees in the distance. A rare site for Midwesterners. (First time seeing them for me, during this trip. I have relatives who have since moved to Florida, so now I see them more often.) I think I may have taken a picture and it's on my old phone. I took it for the palm trees, but now I'm realizing I captured the inside of Kmart too, and that's special. I have no idea how long the store lasted after that. I can only assume it's closed now.
This is honestly so tragic! So many of us grew up with Kmart being a cornerstone of our lives and being there when we needed things. I will really miss them. I think the thing I will miss the most about them aside from blue light specials are eating there at the little Caesars Café. Those were the most funnest times I ever had with my family. RIP Kmart 😢❤
Many of us grew up at least one big box store at least many times in our childhood lives. But unfortunately, thanks to the internet, and especially the rise of smartphones and social media/online shopping in general, it's becoming too inconvenient to ever go to these bix box stores that rarely have what you want and more of going online to find the one you actually want...It's sad, but there used to be a time when you had to go to some newspaper or a company whom did imports from other countries, just so you can get the product you want outside of America. It wasn't cheap, but it was the only way to buy those electronics, clothing, items, products, etc. outside of America. And in the USA, if you wanted to find that nice high quality item, you probably had to go through nearly 5-10+ stores each and every day, or check back every week in the store to see if they brought the item you want reserved for you to purchase, or had them in stock. While I do understand why people love the old times of shopping at their favorite place and buying what's currently there, for people like myself whom would have to travel far to get the item we want or to wait until it arrived in the big box store, I mean, you can take what you get.
Nothing tragic. Things move on.
@@johniii8147damn
I've missed the big dough pretzel, always pestered my parents for one every time we were there.
@@johniii8147bring back toys R us
This was the exact Kmart I would always go to when I was a kid. It's so surreal that it's one of the last 3 left in the country, and so sad to watch this piece of my entire childhood go down with the company.
Also mad respect for the Depeche Mode shirt. Violator is a masterpiece!
for a store closing and trying to get rid of stock, 15% seems like a really measly discount. I remember back in the day seeing Sega's 32X on clearance for $19.99...i wish I bought them all back then but who knew retro gaming would blow up years later.
I had been going there last year and this year. I only bought clothes. The health and beauty was so expensive. There were things that were expensive and I’m like, “ I’m in KMart, right?”
I never understood why stores are soo cheap at giving out discounts, especially when closing. You could easily make some $$$ back at 50-90% or more. Lot of the times they tend to "trash" and tear up a lot of their goods instead, also applies with a lot of retail stores. Damn, those dell monitors are old as heck.,
@@koilamaoh4238 its called the internet. Someone will buy up everthing left and sell it off there.
@@koilamaoh4238 A lot of the time the discounts will slowly deepen as the store gets closer to closing day. They're still trying to maximize what they can recoup.
This is soooo weird!
You know what blows me away? The Rose's stores are still hanging on. While so many of the discount stores all did their best to put out a shiny, modern vibe, I can still walk into one and feel like it's the 1970's... but, I can still walk into them! There are two near me that I shop for specific items.
About 8 years ago, the KMart down the street from me closed, and until about 6 months or so ago, the building just sat there. It makes me sad to see these department stores going away. Part of my childhood, just gone.
I agree. We had so many choices back when I was a kid---Sears, Kmart, Montgomery Wards....the list goes on and on. In my area, the only thing now is Walmart and Target. I miss the days of huge bustling malls, lots of choices. Amazon is great, don't get me wrong, but it was so nice to browse stores on a rainy day...............
* snort * Brace yourself, kid. Nothing they make today is going to last long.
Lawton Oklahoma experienced that as well. Now the old Kmart is a giant U-haul center.
we had a kmart in our town that closed around maybe 2013 or 2015 and it basically just sat there. it was apart of a little shopping plaza in our town and it sat there till around covid. they renovated it to make a amazon fresh but they decided to not build it there. after all the construction was down so now the building is sitting again
same here it sat for some time before it turned into a t mobile call center
Thanks Ray for this documentation of one of the 3 last Kmarts in continental US. Been binge watching your videos lately. You’re so chill! Just fun to watch you explore these places. Your videos give us such nostalgia. It’s refreshing for me to watch. Dead malls and stores are sad to see but you on the other hand you put this really good vibe in your videos. You have a passion to bring us back to the days when we cherished going to the malls and these retailers back in their glorious days. Love how you respect these places and not show such disrespect and disregard like some explorers. Thank you for preserving a part of our cultural history for generations to see.
Thank you so much, I really appreciate this comment. I always try to bring positivity with my content
@@RayOutThere Keep up the good work! I hope you don't stop making videos.
I always think of those large circular vents in the ceiling anytime I think about Kmart. I can remember looking up at those in wonder back in the early 1980s. And they are still cool! Thank you so much for this video.
Thank you for checking it out!
I thought I was the only one who associated those with Kmart. Lol. And that ancient iPad charger, wow!
Yup always remember those from the 90s! Brings me back for sure!
Now a days designs like that are less efficient on displacing heat.
I always found those vents weird and creepy. It was the first thing I noticed in this video.. so interesting to see I wasn't the only one who thought of them as iconic 😅
Hearing all those songs from the ‘90s and ‘00s on the loudspeakers was the icing on the cake.
I remember back in the mid-00s, a few years before our Kmart here in Jersey became Sears Essentials, I remember them doing a jewelry raffle while I was shopping there with my family. I wound up being the winner, I won a chain necklace and bracelet like the ones a lot of popular guys wore in middle school during that era. I felt so lucky and happy that day, and felt like I could finally fit in despite being mostly a loner. Man, that was a great day and one of the last times Kmart was still relatively busy before it gave way to becoming a ghost town. Even after Sears Essentials eventually went back to being Kmart, it was never the same. It closed finally back in late November of 2017, and I took a similar videoed walkthrough with my Kodak camera just to have for myself. It stood empty for years, but now it's being redeveloped into three separate stores, those being Marshalls, Home Goods, and some other one.
The story about you getting the chain in middle school is so sweet. It’s funny how small things like going to kmart can remind us of such precious moments. Shit like that makes me happy
@@kennedy8791 In a sense, Kmart really was its own unique experience back then, much like Toys R Us and Woolworth's was for past generations. I remember their "Blue Light Savings" jingle they used to play on the TVs with "Right here, right now, this is the place I wanna be," I remember seeing films that were just released on DVD playing back there like "Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events," heck even their CD section felt like a cozy nook where you could peruse albums by your favorite artists--that's where I bought my first Bon Jovi album after loving the band when they mentored American Idol contestants. And Halloween and Christmas were always a nice fun time too, their garden section was always transformed into a holiday merchandise show floor with the displays they'd put up. Really miss those days.
I remember Kmart doing a turkey raffle I won one, maybe early 80's .
@@michaellizotte4586 I wish more stores did raffles these days. I think it would also make the shopping experience more fun for customers and encourage them to shop around a longer, which could be great for business.
9:07 looking at that old Kmart ad with Suzanne vega's Toms Diner song in the background was a nice nostalgia touch 😌
While its been cool growing up over the years seeing the birth of the internet and advancing technologies like cell phones, cars, computers, console gaming....its also been sad seeing the demise of things like malls, arcades and stores you remember growing up with like Kmart, Sears and local stores like Ames and Jamesway. The internet has killed off a lot of thigns. Love your vids.....stuff most people don't get to see or don't have time to see...but we can see it through you :)
Thank you so much! Awesome PFP I love Streets of Rage!
I strangely miss Kmart lol the nostalgia reminds me of my parents and shopping at 8pm on weeknights. Going thru the clothing section to the food court, to the electronics then the snack aisles…..
I assure you the internet isn't what killed it.
Eaton’s is another store I remember too
Blaming the internet is like blaming the forest for having oxygen to breathe. I think your real beef is with Amazon.
Kmart is killing it in Australia, and is the go-to store for everyone who wants something cheap. But I also think it's done well in the sense that our Kmart has restricted itself to selling it's own branded items, electronics, general household items and knick knacks - and doesn't sell food/groceries, DVD's/blu-rays, TV's, consoles, white goods or large furniture (other than your common outdoor chairs or cupboards). By restricting themselves to "core" items, which are usually own branded, they're able to focus more on the quality of them all while generating higher profit margins on them and thus keeping the costs low.
If Australians want name-brand electronics, groceries or TV's/blu-rays they'll go to other stores that specialize in them and compete better on price. It also has a better logo and doesn't have an outdated interior/"industrial" warehouse feel that Americans ones do (your shelves look so old like thrift-store ones) - our ones are more homey (think IKEA) with more modern infrastructure. However, another big reason it's doing well that I assume is because Wal-Mart doesn't exist here - and I think if Wal-Mart ever did come, and was able to look modern/stream-lined and focus on core items - it would probably kill off Kmart over here too if it could outcompete it in price.
We need it here..USA. wish they would stop closing😢😢
Not the same company.
I miss Kmart, that is all. This is the last prototypical Kmart store in the US. Miami is downsized, and New York is a lot different from any other Kmart I have ever seen. Well done Ray, keep the retail videos coming.
Thank you! glad you enjoyed it
Outside of the continental U.S. in the United States of the VIrgin Islands , there are 4 Kmarts between 2 of the 3 islands. Just FYI @@RayOutThere
@@islandgirl8198 and in Australia kmart is still huge and wildly successfull, same logo, but different company since the Sears mergers/acquisitions years ago or whatever
I used to love Kmart, especially when Martha started selling her products there. Those early Martha products (homemaking, textiles, etc) were excellent quality.
Yep years ago I bought 2 chairs and they are excellent 👍
As a adult I now appreciate how my parents and other family made the best of layaway at stores like Kmart and Pre-Supercenter Walmart. The way prices are in 2023, being able to layaway big expensive items would be a Godsend
I'm surprised those khakis on that rack are still there. Those sell fast at stores where I live because of the work uniforms requirements
I remember when my mom used to take my sister and I to the K-Mart that’s underground in Penn State in NYC. We used to go almost everyday after school because we lived about 10 minuets walking from Penn Station. Good times…
Sick Depeche Mode shirt. Violator was a great album. As for this Kmart, I guess it'll enjoy the silence. I'm glad you got to shop here one last time, and film it for us . Thanks, Ray
You have good taste! Thanks for watching!
I can remember when I was five years old going to K-Mart was a big deal. They had popcorn, slurpees, and hotdogs to go along with toys and books. I wanted to live there.
Kmart was my childhood. I remember when I was little and we’d go there like every week and I miss it all now. Until I was 12 it finally shut down in my area and haven’t been to a Kmart in 5 years. Just remembering the food aisles, a big book aisle, a food court, Pharmacy, video games/entertainment, toys, and many more!
I knew the stores were heading to their end when I started working at the Oxon Hill, MD location back in 2013. I had just started my junior year of high school and this was around the time where most stores were beginning to heavily implement self checkout with the latest POS technology. Meanwhile I was using a register that was made before I was born and was so slow, I could do the math for a transaction before it could. Like someone had pointed our in another comment, leftover stock was another killer. We had tons and tons of old items that would sit an collect dust but we would have to inventory and tag them anyways.
I worked at a Kmart when I was about 22, like six years ago or so. The old ladies that worked there literally had to teach me how to use those computers, they were such relics! They were slow as hell but as someone that loves computers, it was kinda neat getting to watch those old things boot up and see the old-school IBM logo and what not flash across the screen and meanwhile I was just baffled that they still worked at all. They had to have been running Windows 95 or something similar by the looks of them lol.
That 199X joke was great. I remember when the one in Peachtree City GA closed and we thought out of all the Kmarts to stay open that'd be the one. We dumpster dived them for years and got tons of goofy things, then when they were closing they decided to padlock the dumpster. Always thought that was insulting in a way seeing how they're literally closing down but they decided that was the time to care about people getting stuff out of the trash. :p
RIP Kmart - joining your compadres Bradlees, Caldor, Woolworth, Ames, Sears…
About 24 years ago. Actually it was back in 2000. I was working for Ames for two years. Brinks back memories. Thanks for sharing! Great video!
I live very close to the former Wayne NJ location. I nabbed some bargains at the end. A funny note -Even though it closed on 12/01/19, the big K sign still lights up every night. The building is just sitting empty.
Thats pretty cool!
The toys r us is vacant near there to with the signs up
man just watched your amazing video 😢sad how we went to sleep then one day woke up to company's going out of business then waking up to most states turned into ghost towns and now...every one is homeless. they tried so hard to keep the Kmarts here in CA open but the last one in Hayward ca closed in 2018 i dragged my siblings and neighbors there for a final goodbye on shopping there (my recipient is here somewhere)
I grew up with my family shopping at Kmart as it was the closest "super"/department store to our home. Walmart was a 15-20min drive away with Kmart only 5mins. Weird to say but I miss the "vibes" you get from a Kmart, the lighting or layout..idk what about it. Probably just nostalgia.
Loved this! Thank you for the nostalgia. It’s a shame this store closed. I have so many memories of me and my mom going to Kmart in the late 90s / early 2000s it’s a shame.
Weird, here in Australia they rebranded Kmart here in Australia by selling mostly own brands they sourced overseas direct and it's one of the biggest stores in Australia.
Look up tour videos of Oz Kmart to see what it looks like.
These kinds of videos will be gems in 10 20 years and beyond..
Not gonna lie but K-Mart was a very integral part of my childhood. Here in Puerto Rico for us, K-mart was a fairly popular store next to Sears, Payless "if you wanted to buy shoes for a cheaper price" etc.
My family used to buy most thing from there, from cloths to electronics and even our chrismas presents from the most part came from K-mart, so everytime i see a abandoned K-mart local i can't help but to reminisence of my childhood and how good things were back then.
Loved the pizza there tho, as cheap as it was i used to eat pizza a lot there with a Icee.
Those 5k BTU AC's are extremely good if you put it in the right room size, typically 150 square feet. We bought two of them from my work (Lowes) and they keep the rooms in the 60f area. This is in Florida during the record breaking heatwaves. Wholly recommend those smaller units for smaller rooms.
You do?
Worked at the Vincennes Indiana Kmart until it closed. All the shelving is sold off by footage. It will be palletized and labeled for each buyer. Was negotiated either in person or online by the closing coordinator. Loved working for Kmart.
I remember the Kmart in Paramus and how they had the restaurant at the back of the store and would have blue light specials on the sub sandwiches. My mother would get a bunch and we would take them to school for lunch, felt like a rockstar.
I worked for K-Mart in 2007. I worked multiple departments since most of the time our store was devoid of customers. I knew eventually our store would close and sure enough within a year it closed down. Walmart inevitably was the nail in the coffin for K-Mart.
Duuuuude! The giant vents! You just took me back 30 years! 🤣🤣🤣
The last Kmart in California closed December 20 2021 in the little town of Grass Valley that I am born and raised in. So sad to see these close down. So many memories! They were such a booming company back in the day.
@Swan1434....I remember that KMart well! I worked there from 1984 to 1986 (before going to work at JC Penney), and oddly enough, I met my future husband at an off-clock BBQ when he worked there in late 1989. I now live in Southern Idaho and came back to the NC/GV area in May this year, and went into the Target that replaced KMart. it is one of the nicest Targets I've been in! I used to live up the road from the Auburn Target, which turned into crap after I left California. Props to GV for good planning and revitalizing the KMart shopping center!
@@diannehortonpong1388 Such a small world and an even smaller town! About the time you were working there I was probably shopping with my grandma. I think she was the one supporting that store. She was a hoarder and had a lot of clothes from there. When she passed on the store closed lol enjoy your day :-)
The End of an Era. Thanks for the memories. ❤
It’s really quite sad to see it in this condition. I knew it was only a matter of time until this one was on the chopping block. I actually did a similar video to yours on this location several years ago when it was still in its twilight years. Sad to see the difference between then and now.
I used to work in this one. Glad they are finally closing!
It is really sad
So sad, these stores remind me of my childhood growing up.
Does anyone remember Service Merchandise?? I worked there and closed 3 stores. Sad
I made a video about an abandoned one in Dutchess NY
"Do they have anything good?" 3:06
Yes!! Grab that copy of Boondock Saints on the left immediately!!!!
That brings back memories. There was one out here in Aurora, CO that closed back in August 2017. I went there & bought a few things (some coffee, cereal, and Rustler jeans [they were a brand of jeans I liked for their durability]) about a week before they closed, and I saw the same thing: for the largest part, seemingly deserted. After they closed the building up, I know that it sat empty for a while. Now, there's a fitness center/gym occupying the east side of the building where the garden center/pharmacy/toys section were. The other half, from what I saw, is still being developed.
The same where I live. The garden section is now a fitness center/gym.
Nice to see that they're doing announcement specials to the very end. The commenter mentioning layaway was spot on. People would be in less debt using that model but sadly stores would rather capitalize on folks instant gratification and sell credit with interest rather than bother with layaway anymore.
I think the reason Kmart failed was that they failed to invest in the brand in recent years. First of all, in the early 2000s Kmart had become a junk store. Their failed merger with Sears did not go well. Their stores were in desperate need of remodeling. Eddie Lampert ran the stores into the ground (both Kmart and Sears). I suspect that the fixtures in that store have not been updated in over a decade or two. Their products did not match the quality of Target.
Sears Holdings also sold brands to try to delay bankruptcy. I think the Craftsman Brand was sold to Stanley Black & Decker. Die Hard batteries were sold to Advance Auto Parts. I think Kenmore is still owned by Transformco, the parent of Sears and Kmart. I am not sure if they plan to sell it after the shutdown of all their stores or if it will become a brand people can buy online, or if they will put it in other store chains, or if it will go out of business entirely.
Yeah, the company committed a lot of self-sabotage
yes. instead of focusing on updating their stores and technology, the upper management decided to buy other stores. The big mistake was Kmart buying Sears. Then Eddie Lambert came in and ran Kmart/Sears to the ground. He only cared about the real estate, not the retailer itself. It's sad to see these iconic retailers gone.
@@davinp Stores like K Mart all have a finite life. They close, and something else takes it's place. Think about Bradlees, Caldor, Woolworth, EJ Korvetts, Two Guys, Montgomery Ward, etc.
I've heard that Mr. Lampart and his hedge fund purchased Kmart with the intent to deliberately tank the company and take big profits shorting the stock. Basically profit from loss.
Kmart fell victim to the early 2000s accounting scandals plaguing US companies at the time.
After their 2002 bankruptcy they never really recovered.
Oh man I grew up in River Vale a couple towns over and worked at the Harmon next door to this KMart for 5 years, there's also a great pizza place tucked away in the corner called Broadway Pizza. Man so many memories from this video. There was also a carnival that would setup in the parking lot there in the summer every year. Good times.
I remember that pizzeria, as well as the carnivals! I'd occasionally grab a mac and cheese slice from Broadway if they happened to have it.
Man, I used to routinely shop at the KMart in Lodi NJ, and when that closed, I was shocked. Yeah, the brand was always kinda dingey, but it was affordable for young adults and poor people trying to live in Bergen County. I got my first L desk at that Kmart, and I wish I still had it! I'm kinda surprised that this one in Westwood has held on for so long, and hearing that raffle for jewelry over the PA system was kinda wild, I thought they were going to announce a Blue Light Special at first! God, the Blue Light Specials, and how they would have the actual lights go off in the departments where the specials were active... Memories, memories that'll someday fade, like tears in rain.
My auntie would always take us to the Kmart on Slauson and Vermont in South LA. We’d go there almost every week after school or on weekends. I still remember seeing the store get emptier once they announced they were closing down. It’s now a Ross, FiveBelow, and WSS.
I'd love working in a store right on the edge of closure like that, seems like a rare and memorable experience. Still feel bad for those who need to find new jobs after it's over tho.
If they have paid enough into the unemployment system, they should be able to get that until they find a new job.
9:07 the background music fits the picture perfectly
Reminds me of when I went shopping at the Toys R Us in Mays Landing NJ in the few months before it closed. Seeing all those empty shelves was so disheartening. It was the end of an era.
I grew up down the street from this location. Used to go there all the time with my mom and brothers. Great memories!
Great video Ray! My Kmart growing up was in central jersey on 18 in East Brunswick. It was a true vintage location with the real deal K cafe in the back of the store! Always the best burger and fries with grandma….😢
Thanks for watching!
My Kmart in Killeen TX opened in 1978 and closed in 2017. I was 13 and my best friend and I would walk there from Fort Hood housing to buy fishing supplies. My wife and I went every year starting in 2001 to get Christmas ornaments or to get me a pair of boots, for some reason I liked getting boots there. We loved the colors of the Martha Stewart Christmas stuff. My sister liked the little Archie digest comics and I would buy some there throughout the year and give them to her in a bundle for Christmas. It was a part of our lives and we did not know how much we would miss it until it was gone. Thank you for posting the video.
I worked at a Kmart in Brandon, Florida back in 1996. That was my first job. It was a fun place to work for at that time, especially with Little Caesars inside the store. It’s sad to see them all fading away
Kmart in the 90s...the memories....seeing this made me tear up a bit...
This Kmart, along with this strip mall, is in a very odd spot, in the middle of a neighborhood. The population density, even all the way back in the 1960s when they built this location, was high, being right outside of NYC. So it makes sense that there was a need for it, but it's also odd that less than 10 minutes away is Paramus; probably one of the busiest shopping zones in the USA. There was another Kmart in Paramus, on Route 17, about 20 minutes from this one. It was a total blast from the past because the whole building is an arch. It's still standing, but slated to be razed to make room for a new shopping complex next year.
Razed?
The old school music from my days playing really makes it feel like you're in a time capsule. Its so odd feeling
It’s cool to see that even in the end when they’re closing they’re still making announcements for special sales in certain areas of the store. Not quite the same as the flashing blue light but still cool to see
The end of the Blue Light Special. I will miss it. Never forget!
Poor management is right … after all both Target and Walmart are doing well these days and all 3 started out about the same time in the 60s. The KMart in my town closed a few years ago - I was in there only a few times as it was always a dingy place to be in. I think they had a shoplifting problem as there was always a security guard at the exit who wanted to look at your receipt when you left.
"Don't it always seem to go, you don't know what you've got tìll it's gone?"
Depressingly fitting to play Big Yellow Taxi here. I got my first GameCube AND Nintendo DS systems at a Kmart...
I was trying to hear the music playing in the background during this whole video, but couldn’t due to how low volume of their music was and narration our tour guide lol. I think that’s what I remember the most about Kmart; I remember walking through Kmart, Best Buy, Circuit City and McFrugals with my parents in the 90’s and listening to the music, thinking I’ll be able to come to this store with my parents every Friday! Buying the same old snacks I would always get before going to Blockbuster and picking a game my dad would let me get.
What a time to be alive, now none of those things are with us today, exempting my mother, she’s still here thank goodness. But time really does a number on your happiness and memories, doesn’t it? You’d never think you would miss a store, but fast forward 20+ years and you’re mourning it just people, but places as well.
Looking around the empty store reminds me of when the UK division of US company Woolworth finally closed it's doors around 2009. It existed for around six years after that in name only online (name taken on by another company) and clearly couldn't compete. It would seem the owner of KMart is ESL Investments, a hedge fund company who also own Sears. That store seems to be on it's last legs also with around eleven stores left in the US. Both stores opened in the late 1800s.
They are called vulture capitalists. They buy these companies, load them up with dept and run them into the ground. They aren't closing because of the market. They were designed to be closed to begin with. Then they bankrupt the dept and the dept goes away.
Kmart will forever hold a special place in my heart...
Apparently they're everywhere in Australia.
I think thats so wild
That TV stand takes me back when days were simple.
I’m gonna really miss Kmart. We had two locations in Staten Island that we would frequently go to. One of them would eventually be replaced with a target in 2012 ish. When I compare the two, Target is basically a more modern take on what Kmart was, with even more options like fresh groceries. Still, I’m gonna have fond memories of walking down the aisles and looking at all the things that I couldn’t buy because I didn’t have money haha. And I’m gonna miss the Nathan’s that was open at one of the locations. Good times.
A few of my friends worked in the Richmond Ave Kmart when we were in high school during the 70s.
I still remember shopping with my mom at KMart in the 80's and 90's. Hell I remember saving up to get my first pair of Rollblades there. I really wish I could go back and do it all again. I just feel like time is devouring my childhood.
Man, I remember growing up and it being the upscale cooler place to go shopping. They always had the better toys. I miss it.
I would love to have those desks. We haven't had a K-mart (or as they renamed them in our area - Big-K) in several years. I use to love watching the paint mix machine back in the 70's when my dad would have them mix paint for him. Miss the blue light specials, carousal horses out front.
Grew up with Kmart in California in the 70s-80s.. a lot of great memories. They were a American icon.. will be missed. Was a privilege to work for the Kmart Corp as a driver in early 2000s in Montana...
Kmart was the best. I miss it. They always had good stuff and the rewards program was top notch
The reason so many things in KMart shared branding with Sears is because Sears owned them to the end of both. From Craftsman to Kenmore, Whirlpool, Amana, Roper, etc, Sears Corp owned them all. They owned a LOT of different brands, and even major store chains. Kmart itself, JC Penny... the list was truly extensive.
When I was a kid, I remembered going to Kmart with my grandmother. Even back then I could tell that it was struggling compared with other stores. It always felt like the inventory was old and the signs were yellowing, even back in the 90s. I was never excited to go to Kmart. Still, I have some nostalgia for walking next to the cart with my grandmother. There was something special about having someone who payed attention to me while they were shopping. She passed away two years ago.
I would get my kids clothes & christmas toys from there. The blue light special was wonderful. My husband & I would get our dishes, towels, everything there.
My first gaming pc came from Kmart (2008). I'll miss these stores.
Good job! Thanks for posting!
It makes me sad to see all these dead Kmarts. I remember going to the store all the time with my mother and siblings. I remember the smell, the atmosphere, the cute little café, and the crowds. My mother would go grocery shopping and buy all of our things including Christmas gifts in Kmart. It was our main store of choice. I never thought that this place would disappear and soon become a memory.
We lost ours a couple years ago here in Barberton, Ohio. They split the building and turned one half into a big lots and the other into a Marcs grocery store. Makes me feel old to see them go. The one I saw when stationed in Guam was absolutely massive though!
We used to shop at a Kmart back in the 90’s. The number 1 place in town to shop. They had a cafe in there so we would grab lunch as we walked in then go shop. The best store in the world if you wanted to buy toys and cds.
Seeing the Wet Seal shirt brought me back to high school in the 90s.
I've gone to the Long Island Kmart once a year for the past couple years (especially since the Penn Station NYC one is gone). Last year, it looked like it was on its last legs and waiting to be shut down. There was also a huge chunk that was fenced off. However, this year, the storefront was redone, the fenced off area was opened back up, and it was fully stocked. If i didnt have any context of Kmart's situation, I would have thought this was a store doing decent business. I honestly wonder what the plan is. Is that store making enough profit to keep it propped it up? Otherwise what is the point of this slow death? Is the Kmart (and Sears) brand worth enough to Eddie Lambert that he is willing to gut everything these companies had going for them without just filing for chapter 7 bankruptcy and calling it a day?
The answer is yes. Eddie is doing what he is doing to make more money for himself.
My local K mart had a little Caesar’s in it. It’s what I remember the most, I also remember buying GameCube games there.
1987 .. Good times !! Thanks for the upload !! I love being in a closing stoee !! The one on Long island does well
I lived in a small farming town in central Washington State back in the 1970's. I was about 6 when we got a Kmart store in town. It was the place to shop! Everyone shopped at Kmart. I remember getting my Traxx shoes.( I hated those cheap sneakers) Got my first camera there. It was a Hanimex 110. Sad to see them go down like this. Haven't been in one since the early 2000's. Going the way of Sears and Montgomery Wards. That era of American retail is about all gone. Thanks for the video👍
Calvin: “Dad, how do people make babies?”
Dad: “Most people just go to Sears, buy the kit, and follow the assembly instructions.”
Calvin: “I CAME FROM SEARS??”
Dad: “No. YOU were a Blue Light special at K Mart. Almost as good, and a lot cheaper.”
Calvin: “AAUUGHHH!”
Mom: “Dear, What are you telling Calvin now?!”