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It is the end of an era: the legendary department store chain Kmart has just closed its last full-size store in all of America, which happened to be right here in New York at 2044 Montauk Highway in Bridgehampton.
The news of the then upcoming closure was confirmed last month, just a few weeks before the final day of operations on October 20.
Known for its discounted products—from electronics to groceries, household items, clothing and more—Kmart used to operate over 2,000 stores across the country at its peak but now only helms locations in the British Virgin Island and Guam, plus a smaller, convenience store-like shop in Miami.
Who can forget the iconic Astor Place Kmart at 770 Broadway in Manhattan that shut down in July of 2021? Frequent area visitors still mourn the loss of the popular downtown destination, so we can only imagine how this latest closure will affect the chain’s diehard fans and the local residents who relied on the store’s affordability.
We shopped there eight days before its closure earlier this month and most of the racks were gone with massive sales on the leftover merch, including make-up, outdoor gear and clothing.
Why is Kmart closing?
Kmart filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy production back in 2002—over two decades ago!—also announcing intentions to close down more than 250 stores.
Since then, though, things have only gotten worse: the 2008 recession hit the company hard, as did the Amazon boom and the popularity of similar destinations like Target and Walmart.
What Kmarts have closed so far?
Although the first-ever Kmart store opened in Michigan back in 1962, the retail chain quickly expanded all around the world, at one point operating nearly 2,500 shops globally.
That network, which eventually merged with department store chain Sears, included the Astor Place address, a midtown West storefront by Penn Station, Long Island destinations and more. All of them have now closed.
Other closures in the U.S. so far
Unfortunately, Kmart's trajectory has not been unique. The retail chain is one of many that has had to shutter all operations following financial issues in recent years, including 1,200 unprofitable Walgreens, beloved diner chain Denny's, Red Lobster addresses nationwide and Pizza Hut, which surprisingly and abruptly closed down over 300 restaurants in the midwest.
It's not all bad news, though! Following a pretty sad closure in 2020, Century 21 re-debuted its flagship in the Financial District of Manhattan in 2023, for example.
There's also Wegmans: the supermarket chain opened its first-ever Manhattan address in 2023 and has recently announced it will launch a space on the Upper West Side in the near future.